Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on the substance of allegations made by the Government of Morocco that Iran has provided arms and assistance to the Polisario Front through Hezbollah.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The UK has consistently raised with Iran longstanding concerns about destabilising activity by Iran and its proxies in other countries. I refer to the Foreign Secretary's similar comment in the House on 9 May after his statement on the Iran nuclear deal, when Rehman Chisti asked about Morocco's diplomatic relations with Iran.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what diplomatic strategies they are pursuing to help to de-escalate tensions and reduce mistrust between Iran and her neighbours.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We remain concerned about current tensions in the Middle East, and particularly about Iran’s destabilising regional activity. We are working closely with our partners in the region, as well as the United States and our European allies, to address these concerns. We also continue to raise them with the Iranian Government at the highest levels, pressing them to play a constructive role in regional affairs. Most recently, the Minister for the Middle East, visited Tehran on 29 April and discussed these issues, as well as other areas of concern.
Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment he has made of the (a) economic, (b) diplomatic and (c) tariff conditions that would apply to relations between the UK and the EU as a result of the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Robin Walker
We will pursue a deep and special partnership with the EU taking in both economic and security cooperation. As a priority we will seek a bold and ambitious Free Trade Agreement that is of greater scope and ambition than any such existing agreement.
As we have made clear in our future partnership paper, we believe the UK and EU should continue to consult each other on foreign and security policy issues and agree joint positions, so that we can speak out together and drive progress on areas in our mutual interest. As an example, we should look to coordinate action, and share information, on sanctions policy when needed in order to respond robustly to those who challenge the rules-based international order, as we have recently done effectively in the case of Russia and Iran. We are clear that we want the EU to succeed: a successful EU, with the UK as its closest partner, is in all of our shared interests.
We want to have the greatest possible tariff- and barrier-free trade with our European neighbours, as well as to negotiate our own trade agreements around the world. We want to ensure that UK companies have the maximum freedom to trade with and operate within European markets – and to let European businesses do the same in the UK.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much funding her Department has provided to Iran to assist with human rights projects in each year since 2010-11; and how much such funding she plans to allocate in future years.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Department for International Development (DFID) has not provided any funding to Iran to assist with human rights projects since 2010, and has no plans to do so in future. Between 2011 and 2015, the UK held no diplomatic relations with Iran.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with his counterpart in Iran on Iran's (a) nuclear programme and (b) diplomatic relations with Israel.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The UK and Iran, as parties to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on Iran's nuclear programme, regularly discuss Iran's nuclear programme, both bilaterally and in the Joint Commission with France, Germany, the US, China, Russia and the EU. The upgrade to full diplomatic relations with Iran in 2016 enables us to discuss all manner of issues, including regional affairs and Iran's policy towards Israel.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the UK's relations with (a) Cuba, (b) North Korea, (c) Venezuela, (d) Russia and (e) Iran; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Lidington
The UK’s bilateral relations with Cuba cover a broad range of foreign policy subjects including climate change, counter narcotics, trade and human rights. We continue to engage with the Cuban government to strengthen bilateral relations and promote reform. This includes support for recent economic changes such as a new foreign investment law, and by raising human rights concerns where appropriate.
The UK and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) have had formal bilateral relations since December 2000. Since then, the UK has concentrated on two main foreign policy areas: counter-proliferation and human rights. Our policy of “critical engagement” is intended to promote incremental change: it allows us directly to communicate issues of substantial concern, and focuses on exposing people in North Korea to international values and the benefits of engaging with the international community. Our Embassy in Pyongyang helps to improve our understanding of what is happening inside the country, as well as providing support for small-scale projects aimed at improving the lives of the most vulnerable in DPRK society.
The UK and Venezuela have a constructive and practical relationship and engage in cooperation in areas of mutual interest: our counternarcotics cooperation is vital in tackling illegal drugs trafficking; we are engaging closely ahead of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiations; and our trade links support economic development in both countries, particularly in the oil sector. We have been following the political situation in Venezuela closely and were deeply saddened by the deaths that occurred in protests earlier this year. The British Government called on all sides to reduce tension and take steps to promote political reconciliation through genuine dialogue.
The UK has endeavoured over the past 23 years to build a constructive and mutually beneficial relationship with Russia, to support its integration into the international community and international rules-based system. By its illegal annexation of Crimea, and its aggressive destabilisation of south eastern Ukraine, the Russian leadership has rejected that offer of partnership and instead chosen a path of confrontation. We deeply regret this. Moscow needs to understand that military aggression, destabilisation of a sovereign neighbour, and flouting of international commitments have serious consequences. So whilst we need to maintain a relationship with Russia that enables dialogue and ongoing co-operation on high priority global issues, it cannot be business-as-usual. The UK hopes that the Russian leadership will take the necessary steps to help secure a lasting peace in eastern Ukraine that restores respect for Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity and enables Russia to return to a constructive relationship with the rest of the world.
Following the attack on our Embassy in Iran on 29 November 2011, diplomatic relations with Iran were reduced to their lowest level possible, but were not completely severed. Over the past year, we have been seeking to improve UK/Iran relations on a step-by-step and reciprocal basis. Most recently, My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister met President Rouhani on 24 September in the margins of the UN General Assembly - the first such meeting since the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Both agreed that there had been significant differences between our countries in the past, and that we should seek to progressively improve our bilateral relationship.