Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the prospects of a settlement in relation to Kosovo and Serbia.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to believe that a settlement between Kosovo and Serbia is both possible and essential. The UK supports the EU-facilitated Dialogue between Serbia and Kosovo, with the aim of a comprehensive and sustainable normalisation agreement to the benefit of both countries' people. We welcome the recent interim agreement reached under the Dialogue on the car number plate issue, and encourage both sides to maintain their commitment to the Dialogue process.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made on the prospects of Cypriot reunification.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to supporting the UN process to reach a Cyprus Settlement in line with UN parameters based on the model of a Bi-zonal, Bi-communal Federation with political equality - a model that we believe to be broad enough to address the concerns of both sides. UK Ministers and Officials continue to engage all sides to urge flexibility and compromise to that end.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on events marking the 20th anniversary of the World Conference Against Racism, held in Durban in 2001.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The United Kingdom is committed to combatting all forms of racism, including anti-Semitism, both at home and abroad. We believe that one of the most effective ways to tackle injustices and advocate respect among different religious and racial groups is to encourage all states to uphold their human rights obligations. Some of the anti-Semitic actions and speeches in and around the Durban conference and its various follow-up events gave rise to serious concerns. We will consider UK attendance in the light of developments between now and the commemoration event, including the likelihood of any recurrence.
The Foreign Secretary recently reaffirmed the UK's condemnation to anti-Semitism during a debate in the House of Commons on 20 April 2021, and I raised my opposition to anti-Semitism during a Westminster Hall Debate on 26 November 2020. We also delivered a statement at the United Nations General Assembly in November expressing concern about the rise of anti-Semitism and other forms of discrimination in the wake of Covid-19.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the upcoming events marking the 20th anniversary of the World Conference Against Racism, held in Durban in 2001.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The United Kingdom is committed to combatting all forms of racism, including anti-semitism, both at home and abroad. We believe that one of the most effective ways to tackle injustices and advocate respect among different religious and racial groups is to encourage all states to uphold their human rights obligations. Some of the anti-Semitic actions and speeches in and around the Durban conference and its various follow-up events gave rise to serious concerns. We will consider UK attendance in the light of developments between now and the commemoration event, including the likelihood of any recurrence.
The Foreign Secretary recently reaffirmed the UK's condemnation to anti-semitism during a debate in the House of Commons on 20 April 2021, and I raised my opposition to anti-Semitism during a Westminster Hall Debate on 26 November 2020. We also delivered a statement at the United Nations General Assembly in November expressing concern about the rise of anti-semitism and other forms of discrimination in the wake of Covid-19.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to refer Iran’s non-compliance with the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action nuclear deal to the United Nations Security Council.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
The UN Secretary-General issues a six-monthly report on the implementation of UNSCR 2231, which underpins the JCPoA. The most recent report, the tenth, was discussed by the Security Council in December 2020. We continue to engage closely with the Permanent Members of the UN Security Council to address Iran's non-compliance and stand ready to bring the issue to the Council as necessary. We strongly urge Iran to return to compliance with its Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action commitments without delay.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect on the Middle East peace process of the February 2021 International Criminal Court ruling on the situation of Palestine.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
We respect the independence of the ICC, and we expect it to exercise due prosecutorial and judicial discipline.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with the International Criminal Court on that Court’s determination that it has jurisdiction over East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
We respect the independence of the ICC, and we expect it to exercise due prosecutorial and judicial discipline.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to the Palestinian Authority following reports that a Palestinian university has named its new entrance gate after Salah Khalaf, known as Abu Iyad, who planned the Munich Olympics massacre in 1972 in which 11 Israeli athletes were murdered.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
Our partnership with the Palestinian Authority includes a commitment from the Palestinian leadership to adhere to the principle of non-violence and to tackle language and actions that could incite violence or hatred. We have a regular dialogue with the Palestinian Authority in which we reiterate the need for both sides to prepare their populations for peaceful coexistence, including by promoting a more positive portrayal of each other. We continue to urge both the Israeli and Palestinian leaderships to avoid engaging in, or encouraging, any type of action and language that makes it more difficult to achieve a culture of peaceful coexistence and a negotiated solution to the conflict.
Asked by: Andrew Percy (Conservative - Brigg and Goole)
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 level of risk for LGBT people in Chechnya.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We remain deeply concerned about the continuing persecution of LGBT people in Chechnya. Persecution for being LGBT, anywhere in the world, is abhorrent. As we state in our Travel Advice, there are credible reports of arrest, torture and extrajudicial killing of LGBT people in Chechnya.
In December 2018 the UK was one of 16 countries to invoke the OSCE's Moscow Mechanism, requiring an independent OSCE investigation. The OSCE Moscow Mechanism's independent 2018 report confirmed allegations of serious human rights violations in Chechnya against LGBT people and other groups including unlawful detention, torture, and extrajudicial killings. We continue to urge Russia to implement the recommendations made in the Moscow Mechanism report and to end the climate of impunity for human rights abusers in Chechnya.
We continue to raise our concerns about the persecution of LGBT people in Chechnya with the Russian Government at all levels. On 17 June 2020, I raised this with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Titov.