Pulse.Assent

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

I am pleased Andargachew Tsege is now able to reunite with his loved ones after being separated from them for so long.

His case has been a priority for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and our staff have worked tirelessly to support him and his family throughout his detention.

Recent moves by the Ethiopian Government send a positive signal that they remain serious about following through with promised reforms to increase political space.

Further information

• Follow the Foreign Secretary on Twitter @BorisJohnson and Facebook
• Follow the Foreign Office on Twitter @foreignoffice and Facebook
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The UK is providing a new package of life-saving support to help treat patients in 11 hospitals under pressure in Gaza, by restocking vital medical supplies including surgical equipment, bandages and medicines following the recent surge in violence.

The funding, announced by Minister for the Middle East Alistair Burt today (Tuesday 29 May) on a visit to Gaza, will support work by the International Committee of the Red Cross to keep hospitals open and functioning at a time when the healthcare system is under huge strain.

Today’s commitment of £1.5 million will also help provide physical rehabilitation services for around 4,000 people.

Speaking from Gaza, Minister for the Middle East Alistair Burt said:

I am deeply concerned about the worsening situation in the Gaza strip, and today’s UK aid package gives a message to the world, and to the people of Gaza, that we have not forgotten them or their plight.

Today’s support will help to ensure that hospitals which are under immense pressure are able to cope with the increased number of casualties who need medical and surgical care. It is absolutely vital that the UK steps up to help those suffering and ensure that vulnerable Gazans are able to access treatment to keep them alive.

We have been clear that a political settlement is the only way to ensure lasting peace for Palestinians and Israelis alike. All parties must redouble their political efforts and return to the negotiating table, not only to address the deteriorating conditions in Gaza, but to ensure tragedies of the past months are not repeated.

UK support is already providing Gazans with access to clean water, and improving sanitation facilities to help stop the spread of deadly disease.

Through the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA), UK aid is providing basic health and education to 1.3 million people in Gaza, as well as over 800,000 refugees in the West Bank.

Minister Burt announced in March at the Rome Conference that the UK will deliver its next round of financial support to UNRWA earlier than originally planned to help meet the growing needs of Palestinian refugees across the region.

Notes to editors

Today’s £1.5 million package is a new allocation from the Occupied Palestinian Territories programme budget for 2018/19.

Deputy President of the Supreme Court: Lord Reed

The Queen has been pleased to approve the appointment of The Rt Hon Lord Reed as Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. Lord Reed will replace The Rt Hon the Lord Mance who retires on Wednesday 6 June 2018.

Background information

Lord Reed was appointed as a Justice of the Supreme Court in February 2012. From 2008 to 2012 he was a member of the Inner House of the Court of Session, and from 1998 to 2008, a member of the Outer House of the Court of Session, where he was the Principal Commercial Judge.

In response to shocking recent chemical attacks, 10 states have now joined the UK’s request, sharing a desire to see the use of Chemical Weapons banished to the past.

The Conference will look at ways in which the international community can work together to strengthen and protect this cornerstone of the international rules-based system of non-proliferation.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

The world came together in 1997 to outlaw the development, stockpiling and use of these vile substances through the Chemical Weapons Convention. But in recent years we have seen chemical attacks by the Asad regime in Syria, by Daesh in Syria and Iraq, in Malaysia and even here in the UK in Salisbury.

Today we have brought together 11 other states to formally ask the Director General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to convene a special Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention.

We call on all right-thinking states to come together next month to take action to reaffirm and defend the ban on chemical weapons, and to strengthen the Organisation which we have entrusted with overseeing it.

Notes

• Under the Chemical Weapons Convention, 192 States Parties came together to ban the use of Chemical Weapons.
• The special Conference must be held within 30 days of today’s letter. With 11 states already cosponsoring the call, the UK is confident that the OPCW will soon receive the 64 supportive responses needed for the conference to go ahead.

Further information

• Follow the Foreign Secretary on Twitter @BorisJohnson and Facebook
• Follow the Foreign Office on Twitter @foreignoffice and Facebook
• Follow the Foreign Office on Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn

Welsh troops based in Afghanistan are showing the “incredible spirit” of Welsh soldiers throughout history as they work to support the war-torn country, Alun Cairns said today.

The Secretary of State for Wales spoke after a 24-hour visit to see soldiers of the Welsh Guards based in the Afghan capital Kabul. Mr Cairns sat down with soldiers to learn more about their role in providing security and mentoring help to Afghan officials as the country’s Government continues its work of reconstruction. He also met senior British army commanders for an update on the troops’ peace-keeping mission.

Mr Cairns said:

I was inspired by the incredible spirit and determination of the soldiers I met who are doing their job in a volatile and often dangerous environment.

Having heard from the soldiers first-hand about their life in Kabul, I am incredibly proud of what the Welsh Guards are doing. This is a regiment with a century-long history of serving across the world in conflicts from WWII to Palestine and the Falklands. They are now on their third tour of duty in Afghanistan, and showing the incredible spirit they always do.

While I have always championed our Welsh servicemen and women, being in Afghanistan really brought home to me the work they do in dangerous circumstances. All of Wales owes them a vote of thanks.

There are currently 260 members of the Welsh Guards battle group deployed to Kabul as part of NATO’s Resolute Support Mission from all parts of Wales. The Secretary of State for Wales visited the Regiment’s base camp, sat in on preparations for a patrol and also learned more about their support for the Afghan National Army Officer Academy – often compared to the country’s equivalent of Sandhurst – which is producing the Afghan army’s future officer corps.

Notes to editors:

• The Welsh Guards came into existence on 26 February 1915 by Royal Warrant of George V in order to include Wales in the national component to the Foot Guards. They were the last of the Guards to be created, with the Irish Guards coming into being in 1900. Just three days later, 1st Battalion Welsh Guards mounted its first King’s Guard at Buckingham Palace on 1 March 1915 – St David’s Day. Since then the Welsh Guards has served in WW2, Palestine, Aden, The Falklands War, Northern Ireland, the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan. The Welsh Guards are Wales’s Senior Infantry Regiment with a formidable reputation forged throughout the last century.
• The regiment maintains very close links to the Royal Family and the Colonel of the Regiment is HRH The Prince of Wales. Due to the regiments dual role as combat soldiers and ceremonial troops, it is inextricably tied to the Royal Family. It is the fifth regiment of Foot Guards and regularly conducts guard duty at the Royal palaces and on state occasions such as the Trooping of the Colour.