Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the (a) security of the Government of Burkina Faso and (b) impact of recent mutinies on the security situation for Burkinabe civilians and UK nationals in that country; and what steps she is taking to support (i) ECOWAS and (ii) the elected Government of Burkina Faso in preventing coup attempts.

The UK is deeply concerned about the deteriorating security and political situation in Burkina Faso. As I set out in my statement on 25 January 2022, the UK condemns the coup d'etat by military forces in Burkina Faso, and calls for the immediate, safe and unconditional release of all members of the civilian government who have been detained, including the President of Burkina Faso, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré. It is vital that all parties remain calm and respect human rights, and for Burkina Faso to return to democratic civilian and constitutional rule without delay.

The UK stands with our partners on these developments, including the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union and the G5 Sahel. We continue to update British Nationals through our travel advice. Through our deployment to the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA), our deployment of Chinook helicopters to the French counter-terrorism mission Barkhane, and our programmatic support for stabilisation and conflict resolution, the UK is working to build long-term peace and stability in the Sahel. We also provide humanitarian aid to the most vulnerable in the region, including in Burkina Faso.