Rachael Maskell
Main Page: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)Department Debates - View all Rachael Maskell's debates with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
(1 day, 11 hours ago)
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Yvette Cooper
I completely agree with the right hon. Gentleman about civilian engagement. I assure him that we plan for civilian voices to be heard in the discussions at the UN Security Council, where I strongly believe we need to hear the voices of Sudanese women, and as part of the Berlin conference. He asks about the African Union, which is a priority for us. One of the reasons I went to Addis Ababa was to meet the head of the African Union and other representatives to discuss exactly how we can work with the African Union, and how Foreign Ministers from neighbouring countries can work together. They all desperately want to see peace in Sudan, because they can also see the destabilising effects of what is happening there on their countries and across the region. So yes, we need to work strongly with the African Union too.
Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)
Let me say to the Foreign Secretary that that was the most powerful statement this House has heard on Sudan over the 1,000 days of the conflict. I thank her for all her work in this area, but we know that this war is being fuelled by external actors with an interest in their own profligacy in Sudan. Can she say how she will engage with those actors, many of which we have trading relationships with? What leverage will she use to ensure that they withdraw their weapons and the supply of mercenaries into Sudan, which is fuelling this conflict?
Yvette Cooper
My hon. Friend is right. External countries and actors are fuelling the conflict through the support that they are providing to the warring parties, and that has to end. The reason why the warring parties are refusing to accept what everybody knows to be the case—that there is no military solution to this war—is that they keep thinking they can still secure additional weapons and advantage. That is why an end to the arms flow has to be part of this process, and why we are raising and discussing this issue in all the international discussions.