Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 5 March (HL13948), what support they are giving to the government of Turkey in its request for those accused of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi to be returned to stand trial in that country.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The ongoing Saudi judicial process is an important element in the process to establish accountability. We expect it to proceed in line with internationally recognised legal standards. The question of those accused standing trial in Turkey is a matter to be resolved by the Turkish and Saudi Arabian governments.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 5 March (HL13947), whether they will now answer the question put, namely, what support they are giving, together with other European members of the UN Human Rights Council, to the special rapporteur appointed to consider the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office have been in contact with the UN Special Rapporteur, Agnes Callamard. We regularly discuss with our partners in the EU and UN Human Rights Council how best we can support Ms Callamard in her assessment of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, as noted in the statement we supported at the Human Rights Council on 7 March.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the government of Turkey’s request for those accused of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi to be returned to stand trial in that country; and whether they support that government’s request.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The ongoing Saudi judicial process is an important element in the process to establish accountability. We expect it to proceed in line with internationally recognised legal standards.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are giving, together with other European members of the UN Human Rights Council, to the special rapporteur appointed to consider the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware of the investigation by the UN Special Rapporteur, Agnes Callamard. We will consider the report closely ahead of the UN Human Rights Council.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they have given to the government of Turkey to bring those who murdered Jamal Khashoggi to justice in Turkey.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Both the Minister for Europe and the Americas and the Foreign Secretary have had a number of conversations since Mr Khashoggi's death with our Turkish counterparts. In addition, both the Foreign Secretary and the Prime Minister have raised the issue with the Saudi authorities, including King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman. We have stressed the importance of ensuring that those responsible are held to account, and that Saudi Arabia takes action to build confidence that such an incident could not happen again.
The British Government is also aware of the investigation by the UN Special Rapporteur, Agnes Callamard. We will consider the report closely ahead of the UN Human Rights Council.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there are countries in which there is no European External Action Service office or delegation and UK diplomatic representation is provided by a UK ambassador resident in another country; and if so, where.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The EEAS website provides a listing of where they hold delegations. As is standard, HMG cannot vouch for the accuracy of information provided by third parties. There is no country where the UK is currently represented or has services provided by the EEAS, whether due to a lack of local UK representation, or any other reason. In most countries, the UK is represented by resident or non-resident Ambassadors. EU Exit will not reduce UK representation overseas.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there are countries in which there is a European External Action Service delegation or office and where the UK does not also have an embassy or High Commission; and if so, where.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The EEAS website provides a listing of where they hold delegations. As is standard, HMG cannot vouch for the accuracy of information provided by third parties. There is no country where the UK is currently represented or has services provided by the EEAS, whether due to a lack of local UK representation, or any other reason. In most countries, the UK is represented by resident or non-resident Ambassadors. EU Exit will not reduce UK representation overseas.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, in those countries where there is not a resident UK ambassador but there is a European External Action service office or delegation, the UK representatives (1) participate in EU political co-operation meetings, and (2) are part of any resulting EU common approach to the host country.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK currently remains a full and active member state of the European Union, with the rights and commitments this entails. Once the UK departs the EU, we will take forward an independent foreign policy. But working with the EU on foreign policy will remain important. The UK therefore is seeking a strategic partnership with the EU which facilitates close cooperation in foreign policy, defence and development. This will enable us to continue to work closely with European allies to tackle the common threats we face and to promote the values and interests that we share. This does currently, and could include cooperation in third countries.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 18 September (HL9903), whether they will now answer the question asked, namely how many separate cases of detention in Turkey have been raised with the government of Turkey; and on how many occasions each of those cases of detention have been raised.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As stated in my answer of 18 September 2018 (HL9903), we do not reveal details of all the cases we have raised with the Turkish authorities nor the frequency with which we have raised them. These are private conversations between our two governments. However we will continue to raise key human rights issues, including individual cases where appropriate and in accordance with the criteria outlined in my answer of 18 September 2018 (HL9904), with Turkey.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 18 September (HL9905), whether they will now answer the question asked, namely how many cases of persons held in detention in Turkey have been raised with the government of Turkey as a result of discussions and decisions taken by the EU member states acting in political co-operation.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have participated in one coordinated EU action over detained Turkish citizens. This related to the imprisonment of the leadership of the People's Democratic Party (HDP) and its MPs in November 2016. The EU issued a statement at that time. As previously stated (HL 9905), we do not reveal details of all the cases we have raised. We will continue to cooperate with our partners in this important field.