Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support his Department is providing to his Sudanese counterpart to (a) prevent further violence in that country and (b) ensure a swift and peaceful transition to civilian-led government.

The UK continues to engage with a range of opposition and members of the protest movement, as well as the Transitional Military Council (TMC). We have frequently called for the Sudanese authorities, both in public and directly with them in Khartoum, to ensure that peaceful protests are not met with violence and that those responsible for the injuries and deaths of protestors are held to account. The UK, alongside Troika partners Norway and the US, has called for all sides to engage in an inclusive dialogue that leads to a swift, orderly and peaceful transition to civilian rule. On 4 June in a joint Troika statement, we condemned the recent violent attacks by Sudanese security forces against peaceful protestors in Sudan which left many civilians dead or injured. We also expressed serious concern over TMC's announcement that it would cease negotiations and called for an agreed transfer of power to a civilian-led government.

On 6 June, I summoned the Sudanese Ambassador to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to express our grave concerns at the use of violence against civilians by the Sudanese authorities. The UK has called for the human rights of all Sudanese people to be respected, and for the resumption of the political process leading to an agreed peaceful transfer of power to a civilian-led government, as demanded by the Sudanese people. We will continue to engage with all sides to support a settlement that works for all Sudanese people.

The UK also continues to promote comprehensive peace negotiations through our role in the Troika. Alongside the US and Norway we engage regularly with the African Union (AU), building on long standing support to the AU's mediation efforts to encourage peace and security in Sudan.