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1,406 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksThe Government completely condemn the attacks on two tankers on 13 June. This is deeply worrying at a time of already significant tension. Following our own assessment, the UK…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI thank the hon. Lady for her comprehensive list of questions. I will do my best to answer them—perhaps in reverse order, given that I raised the issue of Nazanin…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksIt is vital that we keep to the joint comprehensive plan of action, as I discussed with His Excellency the Iranian ambassador a short while ago. The International Atomic Energy…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI hope the hon. Gentleman got the sense from my remarks that the UK Government’s position is that we need to dial this down. He spent some time talking about the Trump…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksMy right hon. Friend, who knows a great deal about these things, will know very well that when dealing with Iran we are dealing with a number of moving parts, and sometimes it can…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his question. In terms of what we are doing, talking is important, because if we do not talk, there is a risk of misunderstanding and…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksMy right hon. Friend and predecessor knows a great deal about this region. I pay tribute to him because I think this is the first opportunity I have had to do so. I congratulate…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksThe right hon. Gentleman is of course correct—ultimately, that is where the solution to this lies. The right hon. Gentleman tempts me to consider escorts of some sort through the…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksThe answer is that the sanctions are significant and, to a large extent, have influenced the behaviour of Tehran. I hope that we can work towards a future where those sanctions…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI am very grateful to my hon. Friend, the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. Of course we have a dialogue on these matters and many others—particularly with the E3, as I…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksAll I can do is reiterate the point I have made, which is that we do not comment on security matters. The right hon. Gentleman will have to take my assurances that we have made…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI do, as a matter of fact. I think there is very little for Iran in provoking a conflict. The consequences for Iran would be severe. The consequences for the regime would be…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI can certainly agree with the latter point; that is not a difficult question for me to answer in the affirmative. I listen closely to our own intelligence sources. I have never…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksOur intent is to de-escalate the situation, and I do not think it would be helpful to do anything that ran contrary to that. As I suspect my right hon. Friend knows, it is not the…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI am grateful to my hon. Friend. We need to be clear about the nature of the regime in Tehran, but we have to deal with lots of regimes across the world, and our best interests…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI gather from the harrumphing from those on the Opposition Front Bench that my de-escalatory attempts were not terribly helpful; clearly it ruffled some feathers, and I understand…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksThere is an investigation under way already in relation to the attacks of 12 May, and I have referred to that. It is principally the responsibility of the UAE, since that happened…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI do not want to intrude on private grief, but I hope the hon. Gentleman’s remarks have been heard by the leader of his party and those on his party’s Front Bench.17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksI am very grateful to my hon. Friend for that. I hope he has sensed from my remarks that the intent is to de-escalate this. I make no apologies for the repeated use of that word…17 Jun 2019HANSARDGulf of Oman Oil Tanker AttacksMy hon. Friend is right to raise this. I have referred to a fifth of the world’s oil going through those straits, to Qatari LNG that powers up much of Europe and to the effect,…17 Jun 2019