Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with the Myanmar Government on attempts to evict the ex-Myanmar Ambassador to the UK and his family from their residence in London.

We have been clear that Kyaw Zwar Minn showed great bravery in speaking out against the coup and he has paid a personal cost in doing so. The UK remains steadfast in our opposition to the coup and continues to call for a return to democracy, including through the UK-led UN Security Council on 21 December 2022. Since his dismissal as Ambassador by the regime in April 2021, the FCDO has provided Kyaw Zwar Minn with significant support to help him build a new life in the UK, if he desires.

It is the longstanding policy and practice of successive British Governments to accord recognition to States, not Governments. The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations places the UK under a special duty as the receiving State to protect the premises of the mission and prevent any impairment of its dignity. The FCDO has held discussions at official level with Kyaw Zwar Minn and, separately, with the representatives of the Myanmar Embassy in order to resolve this matter in a mutually acceptable way.