Asked by: Lee Rowley (Conservative - North East Derbyshire)
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 prospects for peace between Israel and the Palestinian Occupied Territories.
Answered by Mark Field
We firmly believe a just and lasting resolution that ends the occupation and delivers peace for both Israelis and Palestinians is long overdue. We believe that negotiations will only succeed when they are conducted between Israelis and Palestinians, supported by the international community. We have encouraged the US Administration to bring forward detailed proposals for a viable peace agreement that addresses the legitimate concerns of both parties. We continue to believe the best way to achieve this is through substantive peace talks between the parties leading to a two-state solution with Jerusalem as a shared capital.
Asked by: Lee Rowley (Conservative - North East Derbyshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Malaysian counterpart since that country’s decision to ban Israeli swimmers from participating in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Qualifiers it is due to host in July 2019.
Answered by Mark Field
We do not agree with Malaysian Government's position on the banning of Israeli athletes. It is fundamentally wrong. Israeli athletes should not be banned from competing. The UK government strongly supports the principle of inclusiveness of the Olympic movement.
I raised our concerns with the Malaysian Minister for Education, Dr Maszlee bin Malik on the 22 January. The British High Commissioner in Kuala Lumpur has done likewise with the Malaysian Foreign Minister. We will continue to raise our strong objection with the Malaysian authorities.