Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
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 potential impact of Israeli settlement expansion on the viability of a future Palestinian state.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answers given on 29 July to question 66511, and on 3 September to question 71442.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to reports that around 20,000 Ukrainian children have been forcibly deported or transferred into Russia or Russian-held territories, what steps his Department is taking to help Ukraine reunite children with their families.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to track Russia's deportation of Ukrainian children. Our efforts focus on communications, sanctions, and accountability. We have raised this issue at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the UN and the Human Rights Council. The UK participated in the most recent meeting of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children in October 2024 and continues to work closely with the Ukrainian government. In November 2024, we announced a third round of sanctions targeting those attempting to forcibly deport and indoctrinate Ukrainian children. We were pleased to see another group of children returned via Qatari mediation in September 2024, and are grateful for Qatar's continued engagement.
Asked by: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat - Torbay)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to enhance targeted sanctions against vessels in Russia's shadow fleet; and whether he plans to align his Department's vessel designations with those of the United States.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Since gaining the power to 'specify' individual vessels in May 2024, the UK has sanctioned 25 tankers transporting Russian oil as part of Putin's shadow fleet; a higher number than that undertaken by partners over the same period. This has disrupted Russia's efforts to undermine our oil sanctions, leaving the majority of these vessels struggling to re-enter the Russian oil trade and intensifying the pressure we have placed on Russian revenues. We have also sanctioned five vessels involved in the Russian LNG sector. We continue to step up our efforts, working closely with partners including the US, to ensure effectiveness and impact.