Contributions
1,451 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityMy hon. Friend is right to focus on how we can broaden both the network of diplomatic pressure on Iran and, in a sense, the support for Iraq, the United States and other countries…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityMy right hon. Friend is right about the behaviour of the Quds Force—the revolutionary guard—over the years. Plenty of voices and decent people in Iran seek a way out for the…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityMy hon. Friend the shipping Minister is having a meeting with the shipping industry tomorrow, predominantly about protecting the ships in the straits and the vulnerabilities…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityYes. My right hon. Friend is absolutely right that the No. 1 threat to us in the United Kingdom and to Europe is the actions by Daesh. We must continue the assault on them, not…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityWe have heard the report, like the right hon. Member, and we are currently trying to establish the truth of it—it came out of Iranian media. Our position would be that we urge…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityI cannot answer for the United States long-term policy on the middle east, but I can say that this action was heavily weighted in self-defence—an issue of the here and now and the…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityI spoke to my German counterpart yesterday—indeed, the German statement on Friday, which came out before ours, was very similar to ours. There is no difference between France and…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityI welcome my hon. Friend to her position in Parliament, and I look forward to working with her. It is absolutely true that, if we really want to protect our people, our friends…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityI have not had any significant meetings, but I support and facilitate any such access for people who wish to come out of the area. That has been the case when we have tried to…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityMy right hon. Friend is right. What has been brought into sharp focus is the fact that time has run out. We must sort this out in the middle east on a collective basis and try to…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityAt present, we, the French and even the United States consistently talk with the likes of the Syrian Democratic Forces to ensure that the prisons are still guarded and that we…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityI did not say the JCPOA was alive and well and all business as normal; I said it was not dead. The JCPOA is a deal that I believe was the right thing to do. I remember, even…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityMy hon. Friend is absolutely right. Nation building in Iraq is really important—not just for us, but for the people of Iraq. We have only suspended the training; we have not…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityThe hon. Gentleman makes a point about Republican Sinn Féin. I noticed the tweet: it is bizarre, but it shows the long tentacles that Hezbollah or the revolutionary guard of Iran…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityAll my experience with the Iranians indicates that they want Iran to be a nation of the world that is respected and remembered for its culture and position; that is their end…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityWhat is important is that the Kurds—and, indeed, some of the sectarian groups, or ethnic groups, in the area—understand about security. It is often insecurity that has driven many…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityMy hon. Friend and I visited Iran as well, a long time ago, and he speaks a lot of sense. Britain’s focus has to be about how we can continue, over the long term, supporting Iraq…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityI certainly press on the United States, which has also said that it is not in its interests, or its wish, to increase tensions. It does not want this event to lead to war. It has…07 Jan 2020HANSARDMiddle East: SecurityMy hon. Friend makes the really important point that both diplomacy and defence do not come cheap and we need to invest in that. Sometimes we need to invest in helping others to…07 Jan 2020HANSARDArmed Forces Covenant Annual ReportToday, I am laying before Parliament the armed forces covenant annual report 2019. Our armed forces protect our nation with unwavering honour, courage and commitment. We owe them…20 Dec 2019