Contributions
2,121 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD VenezuelaThe hon. Member makes an important, thoughtful point about the way in which frameworks need to work, but he is also right that there needs to be the transition to democracy at the…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaThe hon. Member should not make a false equivalence between different situations; it would be inappropriate to do so. We will continue to work with the US in the discussions this…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaI know that there have been many concerns about engagement in the oil industry in Venezuela, particularly of Iran and Russia. The right hon. Member referred to issues around China…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaWe continue to have a very strong engagement with the Commonwealth and are continuing to do so in the light of the weekend’s events. There are Commonwealth countries and overseas…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaWe obviously have to keep in mind that this was an authoritarian dictator who is being investigated by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, which is why…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaThe US has set out its national security strategy and we have separately set out ours, and they are clearly different. I have raised with the US some particular issues around the…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaThe UN Security Council has been discussing Venezuela today, as we would expect the UN Security Council to do on a significant issue. We have deep intelligence and security…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaMy hon. Friend is exactly right. There is a real risk of instability in Venezuela now, and it will be crucial to build civil society and give people in Venezuela hope, rather than…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaThe instability in the region has been heavily exacerbated and driven by the Maduro regime, given the scale of migration and trafficking, the operations of criminal gangs and the…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaWe continue to have important discussions with the US about Ukraine and support for Ukraine. Many of those discussions have been about the security guarantees that the US would…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaThe Prime Minister did so this morning when he was asked about it.05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaLet me just say what is in the interests of the people of Venezuela, because that was where the hon. Member started her question. What I think is in the interests of the people of…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaLet me address some of the hon. Member’s bigger points about the international rules-based order and global power politics. He and I are old enough to have experience and…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaThe Maduro regime did not have the support of the Venezuelan people. That was the consequence of the July 2024 election, for which they have continually refused to publish the…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaThe reason we stand up for the UN charter and international law is partly because it reflects our values and partly because it reflects our interests, and because that UN charter…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaAgain, the Maduro regime has been deeply damaging for the people of Venezuela. We do not shed a tear for the end of the Maduro regime. We do believe, however, that it is essential…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaIt is fundamentally wrong to draw any kind of equivalence between what is happening in Venezuela and what is happening in Ukraine—they are fundamentally different. The US is…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaI think I have been clear not only that rules matter and that international law matters, but that we need to ensure that we look at the different circumstances of different…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaYes is the answer to the hon. Member’s questions. We are continuing to raise and promote international law through the United Nations and the Security Council; we are continuing…05 Jan 2026HANSARD VenezuelaThat is an extremely important issue, and I discussed exactly that with US Secretary of State Rubio yesterday in respect of how we ensure that there is stability in Venezuela and…05 Jan 2026