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Written Question
North Korea: Human Rights
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of progress on human rights in North Korea since the publication of the UN Report of the commission of inquiry on human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea -­ A/HRC/25/63.

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is deeply concerned about the appalling human rights situation in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), as documented by the 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry Report on Human Rights in the country. The UK has responded to the report's recommendations by continuing to press for an annual debate in the UN Security Council, and working to secure a robust resolution on the DPRK at the UN Human Rights Council. On 17 August 2023, at the first UNSC open meeting on the human rights situation in the DPRK since 2017, the UK highlighted inextricable links between the DPRK's human rights violations and its illegal weapons programme, and called on the DPRK to engage with the UN Special Rapporteur. This year, the UK will again work closely with partners to secure a strong resolution which stresses the importance of following-up recommendations from the COI Report and provides the basis for further work on a credible framework for accountability for human rights violations in the DPRK.


Written Question
Fraud: International Cooperation
Thursday 21st March 2024

Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to collaborate with its counterparts in other countries to tackle fraud.

Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)

Last week the Government hosted the first ever Global Fraud Summit.

This brought together Ministers and senior representatives from the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, France, Germany, Italy, Singapore and the Republic of Korea as well as the United Nations, European Union, Financial Action Task Force and INTERPOL to emphasise the need for international collaboration to tackle fraud.

We agreed an ambitious communiqué which sets out a new international framework to better understand and address the threat and keep our citizens safe.

We will continue to build upon these commitments whilst also engaging bilaterally with key countries to build capability and strengthen their ability to tackle and disrupt fraud before it reaches the UK.


Written Question
North Korea: Weapons
Tuesday 19th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to impose further sanctions on North Korean officials and entities under the Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020, including those who have been involved in the supply of weapons to Russia.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK remains concerned by the appalling human rights situation in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), as I [Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon] made clear during the House of Lords Debate on 14 December 2023. The Global Human Rights sanctions regime gives the UK a powerful tool that we can use to tackle human rights violations and abuses and underpins the UK's role as a force for good in global affairs, and we continue to keep further listings under review. On 22 February, the UK sanctioned five individuals and entities involved in DPRK-Russia weapons transfers. The DPRK is already subject to a robust sanctions regime and the UK will continue to work with our partners to hold the DPRK to account for supporting Russia's illegal war in Ukraine.


Written Question
North Korea: Human Rights and Humanitarian Situation
Monday 18th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of human rights violations and the humanitarian situation in North Korea and whether they intend to raise concerns at the UN Security Council and at the next meeting of the UN Human Rights Council.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is deeply concerned about the appalling human rights situation in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), as documented by the 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry Report on Human Rights in the country. The UK has responded to the report's recommendations by continuing to press for an annual debate in the UN Security Council, and working to secure a robust resolution on the DPRK at the UN Human Rights Council. On 17 August 2023, at the first UNSC open meeting on the human rights situation in the DPRK since 2017, the UK highlighted inextricable links between the DPRK's human rights violations and its illegal weapons programme, and called on the DPRK to engage with the UN Special Rapporteur. This year, the UK will again work closely with partners to secure a strong resolution which stresses the importance of following-up recommendations from the COI Report and provides the basis for further work on a credible framework for accountability for human rights violations in the DPRK.


Written Question
North Korea: Human Rights
Monday 18th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the tenth anniversary of the Report of the Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, and what steps they have taken to implement its recommendations.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is deeply concerned about the appalling human rights situation in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), as documented by the 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry Report on Human Rights in the country. The UK has responded to the report's recommendations by continuing to press for an annual debate in the UN Security Council, and working to secure a robust resolution on the DPRK at the UN Human Rights Council. On 17 August 2023, at the first UNSC open meeting on the human rights situation in the DPRK since 2017, the UK highlighted inextricable links between the DPRK's human rights violations and its illegal weapons programme, and called on the DPRK to engage with the UN Special Rapporteur. This year, the UK will again work closely with partners to secure a strong resolution which stresses the importance of following-up recommendations from the COI Report and provides the basis for further work on a credible framework for accountability for human rights violations in the DPRK.


Written Question
Sanctions: Russia
Tuesday 5th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are taking steps through the Financial Action Task Force against Russia for violating sanctions on North Korea.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

On 23 February, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) expressed its concern about the growing financial connectivity of Russia with countries subject to countermeasures, namely North Korea and Iran, and the potential risks of proliferation financing, malicious cyber activities and ransomware attacks.

The UK’s recent joint statement (12 January 2024) is clear that Russia’s procurement of North Korean ballistic missiles and their use against Ukraine violate multiple UNSCRs. Actively facilitating the circumvention of UNSCR 1718 and violating its prohibitions undermines the global fight against proliferation, the UN sanctions regime, and consequently the financial sanctions requirements of the FATF standards. The UK will continue to call out Russia’s violation of UNSCRs both at the UN and within the FATF.


Written Question
Defence
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 19 February 2024 to Question 13286 on Defence, if he will publish a list of the non-NATO countries with which the UK has (a) bilateral and (b) multilateral (i) agreements and (ii) arrangements to consult in the event of attack.

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

Various bilateral and multilateral agreements and arrangements commit the UK to consulting with non-NATO countries in relation to international security matters. The precise language that triggers any consultation under these arrangements varies. The Five Power Defence Arrangements (1971) with Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and Singapore; the UK-Sweden Security Agreement (2022); and the UK-Ukraine Security Agreement (2024) all include reference to consultation in the event of attack.

Separate agreements with Australia (2013), Japan (2023), and the Republic of Korea (2023) refer to consultation on 'threats to international peace and security' (Australia) and 'important regional and global security issues' (Japan and Republic of Korea) respectively.


Written Question
Diplomatic Relations
Monday 26th February 2024

Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government in which countries the UK does not have a permanent diplomatic presence.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has a network of 281 officially designated overseas Posts. It does not currently have a permanent diplomatic presence in the countries listed below. However, the list includes countries in which we have officially designated Posts which are temporarily suspended in country and our mission to that country operates elsewhere for political or operational reasons (Afghanistan, North Korea, Sudan, Syria, Yemen) or have diplomatic staff who are not in permanent residence (Haiti, Burundi, Gabon). Locations defined as UK territories are excluded. Information about the FCDO overseas network is available at www.gov.uk/government/publications/list-of-foreign-office-posts.

  • Afghanistan(1)
  • Andorra
  • Benin
  • Bhutan
  • Burkina Faso
  • Burundi(2)
  • Cape Verde
  • Central African Republic
  • Comoros
  • Congo
  • Dominica
  • East Timor
  • Equatorial Guinea
  • Gabon(2)
  • Guinea-Bissau
  • Haiti(2)
  • Honduras
  • Kiribati
  • Liechtenstein
  • Marshall Islands
  • Federated States of Micronesia
  • Monaco
  • Nauru
  • Nicaragua
  • North Korea(1)
  • Palau
  • St Kitts and Nevis
  • San Marino
  • Sao Tome and Principe
  • Sudan(1)
  • Suriname
  • Syria(1)
  • Togo
  • Tuvalu
  • Yemen(1)

Key:

(1) Temporarily suspended

(2) Diplomats not in permanent residence


Written Question

Question Link

Wednesday 21st February 2024

Asked by: Sheryll Murray (Conservative - South East Cornwall)

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with her international counterparts on AI safety.

Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology

I have had several such discussions including at the AI Safety Summit, during which I was pleased to meet with more than 20 Digital Ministers.

I have since engaged with my counterparts from Australia, Japan, France, the US and the EU, and I have recently met with my Canadian counterpart to sign an important new agreement on compute collaboration.

I will continue to discuss AI safety as we work towards the next Safety Summits hosted by the Republic of Korea and France.


Written Question
North Korea: Conflict Prevention
Monday 19th February 2024

Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government why they have not undertaken a Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability assessment of the situation in North Korea; and what plans they have, if any, to undertake that assessment.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

We regularly review the situation on the Korean Peninsula. The UK is committed to securing peace and we are clear that North Korea's nuclear and weapons programmes must be dismantled to ensure stability in the region. The Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) issues an annual report covering threats to conflict and stability worldwide. Further reports and assessments of a specific nature are released on a case by case basis.