Report by the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities: UK response, November 2022

Thank you, Ambassador Hasani, for your presentation on recent activities. It certainly makes clear the broad range of work, key to the OSCE’s comprehensive concept of security, which you and your team cover.

For eight months now, we have witnessed the humanitarian catastrophe stemming from Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. From its effects on energy prices, to the increased risk of trafficking, the destabilising and degenerative effects of this war of choice are significant and numerous. Inflation in Ukraine is forecast to exceed 30% by the end of 2022, eroding real incomes and increasing poverty; and the Ukrainian Ministry of Finance has estimated a funding gap in its 2023 budget of 38 billion dollars. And as we have heard in this forum, the war has done 37 billion euros worth of damage to Ukraine’s natural environment, with pollution, forest fires, damage to nature reserves, and destruction of water resources. All are direct results of Russia’s aggression.

We therefore support your decision to continue to shift your office’s focus to remedy these effects; as well as your suite of projects in response, including assessing the environmental damage. Russia must be held to account for all their actions in Ukraine. Credible and thorough assessments are an essential part of this.

I would like to focus my remarks on three interlinked areas of security that have become increasingly important since the start of Russia’s war.

First, energy security.

We are pleased to see the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) address this important topic, through the protection of critical energy infrastructure from natural and man-made disasters; and supporting participating States to diversify their energy mix to include renewable energy, energy efficiency, and alternative fuels.

The dramatic rise in global energy prices, exacerbated by Russia’s weaponisation of energy, has highlighted the importance of reducing our reliance on fossil fuels. The UK’s 10 Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution and our Net Zero Strategy set out our vision; and at COP27, our Prime Minister announced a further 65 and a half million pounds for the Clean Energy Innovation Facility, providing grants to researchers and scientists in developing countries to accelerate the development of clean technology.

This shift can help us in addressing the second issue – climate security.

The UK sees an undeniable link between climate, nature, peace and security. The impacts of climate change multiply the threats faced by vulnerable populations. We were pleased to see the continuation of your office’s flagship climate project in South-Eastern Europe, Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia.

We are clear that we must accelerate climate action. Under the UK’s COP Presidency, almost all developed country climate finance providers made new, forward-looking climate finance commitments. The Glasgow Climate Pact means that ‘1.5 degrees’ remains in sight, but this goal will only be achieved through immediate, sustained global effort. As we hand over the Presidency to another member of the OSCE family – Egypt – we must maintain the momentum that parties built at COP26.

Climate change increases competition for water and land, adding to the risk of the third threat – food insecurity.

As you said at the Economic and Environmental Committee meeting in June, armed conflicts and climate change have direct consequences on food security in the OSCE region. Your office’s energy projects improve the sustainability and resilience of the food supply chain.

Today’s global food security crisis was exacerbated by Russia’s brutal war. Farmers are on the frontline – including in Ukraine where brave farmers continue to plant and harvest their crops. We must support them to export their grain and to rebuild their agriculture.

And finally, we share your assessment that the economic empowerment of women is a pre-requisite for their full and effective participation in society, and has a reinforcing effect on our common security. We welcome the integration of a gender perspective in your projects. Challenging destructive gender stereotypes is essential to combat the root cause of women’s disempowerment.

I would like to thank you again, Ambassador Hasani, for all your and your team’s work these past six months.

Thank you.

Second ASEAN Economic Ministers-UK Consultation – Joint Statement

The Second ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) – United Kingdom Consultation was held on 10 November 2022. The Consultation was co-chaired by H.E. Pan Sorasak, Minister of Commerce of the Royal Government of Cambodia, and Greg Hands MP, Minister of State for the Department of International Trade of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK).

The Meeting was pleased to note that the economies of ASEAN and the UK are on their path to post-COVID-19 recovery. According to statistics, total UK trade with ASEAN increased by 3.7 per cent from £36.6 billion in 2020 to £38.0 billion in 2021. The Meeting also noted that foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow from the UK to the ASEAN region had been growing prior to being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this regard, the Meeting noted that in 2020, the FDI inflow from the UK into ASEAN was at least £32.8 billion, £19.0 billion lower than in 2019. In 2020, ASEAN accounted for at least 2.0 per cent of the total UK outward FDI stock.

The Meeting reiterated its commitment to forge a closer cooperation to enable the continued growth of the UK and ASEAN economies following the COVID-19 pandemic. The Meeting expressed appreciation to the UK’s support to the region’s COVID-19 pandemic responses, including through its contribution made to the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund and to the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework (ACRF) and its Implementation Plan.

The Meeting noted that the post-COVID-19 economic recovery remains vulnerable to adverse global economic developments. The Meeting expressed its deep concerns on geopolitical tension and continued risks to global food and energy security, and rising inflationary pressure.

The Meeting exchanged views on ASEAN’s and the UK’s approach in the Indo-Pacific. The Meeting reaffirmed its commitment to ASEAN Centrality and unity in the evolving regional architecture and reiterated the commitment to support an ASEAN-centred regional architecture that is open, transparent, inclusive and rules based, built upon ASEAN-led mechanisms to support the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP).

The Meeting noted paragraph 14 of the Chairman’s Statement of the ASEAN Post Ministerial Conference (PMC) 10+1 Sessions with the Dialogue Partners and Trilateral Meetings (Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 3-4 August 2022) and underscored the importance of multilateralism, adherence to international law, and respect for sovereignty in contributing to global and regional peace, stability, and prosperity.

The Meeting welcomed the growing economic cooperation between ASEAN and the UK following the establishment of the ASEAN-UK Dialogue Partnership last year. The Meeting reiterated its commitment to continue strengthening economic cooperation between ASEAN and the UK, as specified in the 2021 Joint Ministerial Declaration for Future Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and the UK (Joint Ministerial Declaration). To this end, the Meeting endorsed the Work Plan to Implement the Joint Ministerial Declaration for Future Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and the UK, and tasked ASEAN and UK Economic Officials to manage and update the Work Plan as necessary.

The Meeting highlighted that since the endorsement of the Joint Ministerial Declaration, the UK had provided support to ASEAN under each of the 11 priority areas. The UK has delivered 73 activities working across 23 ASEAN Sectoral Bodies. The Meeting acknowledged the importance of working together to address shared resilience, the need for free and open markets, diverse supply chains, and a deep trading relationship between the UK and ASEAN, in order to build greater supply chain resilience. The Meeting welcomed the findings of the deep dive study into the regional value chain for medical technologies, presented to the ASEAN Integration Monitoring Division in July 2022 and the Special Committee of the Whole Meeting in September 2022. Both of these activities are part of the effective implementation of Accelerated COVID-19 Economic Support (ACES) programme. The Meeting also thanked the UK for inviting the Chair of the G7 Economic Resilience Panel, Lord Mark Sedwill, to present the findings of the Panel to ASEAN Senior Economic Officials. The Meeting noted the recent publication of the UK’s Critical Minerals Strategy.

The Meeting noted the UK’s participation in the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation and the ASEAN Network of Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Experts to share expertise and technical assistance to progress ASEAN priorities in combating intellectual property infringements and counterfeits, especially in the area of e-commerce trade. The Meeting further noted the UK’s participation in the ASEAN Experts Group on Competition, encouraging continued engagement with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority following their inclusion in the ASEAN Competition Conference in December 2021 and the delivery of capacity building regarding competition policy for digital markets in August 2022.

The Meeting recognised the critical role of the multilateral trading system centred on the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The Meeting welcomed the successful outcomes of the Twelfth WTO Ministerial Conference (MC12) held on 12-17 June 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland. The Meeting expressed its optimism that the series of decisions made at the MC12, namely the “Geneva Package”, laid the foundations for future initiatives and has shown there is widespread commitment from members to work to enhance the WTO’s effectiveness. There was agreement that there is now the momentum, the focus, and the foundations to build on these outcomes. The WTO’s members now need to capitalise on this moment and start laying the groundwork to ensure a fruitful MC13, which will help reinvigorate the WTO and improve the trust of the global community in the multilateral trading system. The Meeting also reiterated its support for a rules-based, non-discriminatory, open, free, inclusive, equitable, and transparent multilateral trading system, with the WTO at its core, whilst also highlighting the need to reform the WTO to ensure it remains effective in its operation, fit-for-purpose and forward looking. The UK and ASEAN will work together to encourage compromise and build consensus.

The Meeting reiterated its commitment to promote regulatory excellence in ASEAN. The Meeting welcomed the findings of the “Adoption of International Standards in ASEAN” report by the British Standards Institute, and thanked the UK for the workshop with the ASEAN Consultative Committee on Standards and Quality (ACCSQ) and encouraged the UK’s continued participation in the group’s regular meetings. The Meeting noted the UK’s longstanding support of the ASEAN-OECD Good Regulatory Practice Network and noted the special project exploring learning from the pandemic and future opportunities for regulatory reform in the region, including through new technology such as digital consultation to improve effectiveness and simplicity of regulation to enable business growth and trade.

The Meeting looked forward to harnessing the Digital Innovation Partnership to drive the growth of our digital economies under three thematic pillars: Digital Economy Business Partnerships; Digital Trade Policy, Regulation and Standards, and; Digital Government Transformation and Digital Inclusion. The Meeting welcomed the ASEAN-UK Digital Dialogue, held on 8 September 2022, which helped facilitate public and private sector collaboration on digital innovation and technology.

The Meeting noted the UK’s significant contribution to ASEAN in tackling climate change. The Meeting welcomed British International Investment (BII) investment of up to £500 million in the Indo-Pacific and noted that it will be reviewing investment opportunities in the Philippines and Indonesia amongst others, focussing on climate finance investments. The Meeting also noted that the UK has committed up to £107 million to the ASEAN Green Catalytic Finance Facility – fulfilling one of our flagship COP26 commitments. The Meeting welcomed the delivery of the ASEAN-UK Sustainable Leadership in Infrastructure Course and noted that the course was designed specifically with ASEAN’s priorities in mind, as set out in the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity 2025. The Meeting also highlighted other areas of cooperation that ASEAN and the UK will continue to build on, such as financial services, women’s economic empowerment, and support to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

The Meeting exchanged views with the United Kingdom-ASEAN Business Council (UKABC) and noted the briefing by the UKABC on the recent economic activities between the private sectors from the UK and ASEAN including, the ASEAN Financial Literacy Conference and the UK-ASEAN Business Forum, among others. The Meeting expressed its appreciation to the invaluable efforts by the UKABC to further improve collaboration between the private sectors between ASEAN and the UK and looked forward to continued collaboration.

The Meeting expressed its support for Indonesia’s G20 Presidency under the theme “Recover Together, Recover Stronger” and Thailand as host of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) under the theme “Open. Connect. Balance.”. The Meeting noted that these processes provide a unique opportunity for all participating countries/economies to jointly advance the collective global and regional agenda and efforts to bring peace, prosperity and sustainable and inclusive development to all our peoples.

The Meeting reflected on the success of the first full year of ASEAN-UK cooperation now that the UK is an ASEAN Dialogue Partner. The Meeting highlighted the UK’s commitment to deliver impactful, tangible results through our ASEAN-UK partnership, enabling economic growth in the ASEAN region and strengthening ASEAN-UK trade ties for the benefit of our business communities and people.

Statement from the Joint Expeditionary Force

Today, Defence Ministers and senior representatives of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) – comprising Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom – met here today in Edinburgh.

Eight months after meeting at Belvoir Castle on the eve of Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, the JEF nations remain steadfast in our support for sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. Since February, JEF members have been at the forefront of providing diplomatic, financial, humanitarian and military support to Ukraine, nationally and in various international frameworks. The JEF has also made a significant contribution to bolstering the security of Northern Europe through a series of coordinated activities to enhance defensive responses.

Yesterday we witnessed first hand personnel from JEF members instructing Ukrainian troops as part of the international training offer. Together we are providing Ukrainian citizens with the skills, capabilities and personal equipment that they need to defend their homeland.

Today we addressed recent developments in the ongoing invasion and considered how our nations should adapt our contributions to continue providing impactful and enduring support. JEF members have made significant provision of military aid over the last eight months. This support will also now be built upon through the International Fund for Ukraine, which will finance new contracts for the provision of vital equipment for Ukraine’s fight.

The JEF has increased its military activities in Northern Europe in 2022 to provide greater levels of security assurance to our members and the wider region. As we meet, Joint Protector 2022 is concluding in Denmark, through which JEF members have exercised our collective responses to the newly emerging threats and potential crisis scenarios. This year the JEF has also deployed military forces and provided practical assurance measures to Finland and Sweden through their accession to NATO, and we remain steadfast in our support of them becoming full members of the Alliance.

JEF meetings develop both our shared understanding of events and agility to react to them, providing a valuable contribution to regional and wider European security. Today, we reviewed that contribution and agreed to deepen our cooperation on hybrid threats and the protection of Critical National Infrastructure, and mature our vision for the JEF’s long-term development as a key component of Northern European security: supporting our members, delivering region-specific and multi-domain defence activities, and contributing to the security of Europe as one of NATO’s Framework Nation Concept.

The leaders of JEF member nations are scheduled to meet in Riga, Latvia, in December and will progress this work together.

PM call with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine: 10 November 2022

Press release

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak spoke to the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, this morning.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak spoke to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this morning.

The leaders agreed that any Russian withdrawal from the occupied city of Kherson would demonstrate strong progress for the Ukrainian forces and reinforce the weakness of Russia’s military offensive, but it was right to continue to exercise caution until the Ukrainian flag was raised over the city.

The Prime Minister praised the bravery of the Ukrainian armed forces and reiterated the UK’s unwavering military, economic and political support. He expressed his horror at the ongoing Russian drone strikes on civilian areas and confirmed that the UK would continue providing further military aid, including another 1,000 surface-to-air missiles and more than 25,000 extreme cold winter kits for troops.

President Zelenskyy set out how UK military support is protecting vital energy infrastructure and helping Ukrainian troops to make advances on the battlefield against Putin’s unjustified invasion.

Ahead of next week’s G20 meeting, the leaders discussed the importance of continued coordinated international support for Ukraine. They agreed Russia must be held to account for its actions and prevented from blocking vital supplies of Ukrainian grain and fertiliser reaching global markets.

The Prime Minister and President Zelenskyy agreed to remain in close contact to make progress on these issues and ensure Ukraine succeeds as a sovereign and democratic nation.

Published 10 November 2022

Anyone with Prenoxad (naloxone) injection kits must check for missing needles

A small number of kits of Prenoxad (naloxone) 1mg/ml Solution for Injection in a pre-filled syringe, an emergency medicine for suspected opioid overdose, may be missing needles, which would mean that some individuals may not be able to administer life-saving doses of this medicine in an emergency.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is urging patients, carers and healthcare professionals who have kits of Prenoxad Injection for emergency situations to visually check the contents of their kits by holding the front of the sealed kit against a light source to confirm that there are two (2) needles inside their kit. If the kit does not have two needles, it should be returned and replaced. Detailed instructions and reference images on how to visually check the kits can be found in the MHRA patient letter.

If it is not possible to confirm the presence of two needle packets visually, holders of Prenoxad Injection can open their kits without touching the pre-filled syringe (the tube with liquid in) to confirm there are two needles inside each kit. Once the check is completed, the kit must be carefully closed to ensure the contents stay secure. People can ask a healthcare professional if they are not sure how to visually check or physically open a Prenoxad Injection kit.

Healthcare professionals, services providers and local teams, including those involved in needle exchange services, have been asked by the MHRA to contact people who have been supplied Prenoxad Injection kits to ask them to check their kits for missing needles, and to arrange a replacement if needed.

This issue was detected when the manufacturer received reports from France of missing needles in kits of Prenoxad Injection. These kits normally contain 2 needles along with the pre-filled syringe containing the active ingredient (naloxone) and the Patient Information Leaflet. Although there are no reports to date of kits in the UK with missing needles, the potential for a small number of kits to have fewer than two (2) needles cannot be ruled out. There is no evidence to date that this manufacturing error has caused any harm to patients in the UK.

Dr Alison Cave, MHRA Chief Safety Officer, said:

Patient safety is always our priority. It is vitally important that you visually check the contents of your Prenoxad Injection kit and if there are fewer than two needles, you should return your kit and obtain a replacement. If you have been given a kit of this medicine since 27 March 2020 and are unsure how many needles it contains, please seek advice from the healthcare professional or service provider who supplied this kit.

If needed, your healthcare professional or service provider will give you a replacement kit or refer you to their nearest supplier. This will usually be a drug treatment service, a community pharmacy, a needle and syringe programme, a peer support group, or a drugs outreach worker.

We have taken prompt action to ensure kits with missing needles will no longer be given to patients. There are no concerns about the medicine in these kits and other products containing naloxone have not been affected by this manufacturing error. Please report any issues with your Prenoxad Injection kit via the Yellow Card scheme website.

Prenoxad Injection is carried by people at risk of opioid overdose, or those who know people at risk of overdose. It is used during emergencies at home, in non-medical spaces or in healthcare facilities for the complete or partial reversal of respiratory depression caused by natural and synthetic opioids including methadone, and some other opioids such as dextropropoxyphene and certain mixed analgesics: nalbuphine and pentazocine. Prenoxad Injection may also be used for the diagnosis of suspected severe opioid overdose.

Further information

Detailed instructions and reference images on how to check Prenoxad Injection kits for missing needles are included in the MHRA patient letter.
Anyone experiencing or observing someone experiencing symptoms of opioid overdose should immediately seek medical assistance. If there is nasal naloxone or injectable naloxone (with a needle) available, it should be administered according to the instructions in the kit. If someone has symptoms of an opioid overdose and is not breathing, 999 should be called and an ambulance requested immediately. General symptoms of opioid overdose include pinpoint pupils, loss of consciousness, respiratory depression (breathing slows or stops), extremely pale face that may feel clammy to the touch, bluish purple tinge to lips or fingernails, no response to noise, cannot be awakened, unable to speak, vomiting and/or making gurgling noises.

Notes to editors

National Patient Safety Alert: Class 4 Medicines Defect Information: Prenoxad 1mg/ml Solution for Injection – This is a Caution in Use (Class 4) notification involving all batches on the UK market of Prenoxad 1mg/ml Solution for Injection in a pre-filled syringe: approximately 466,700 kits.
Detailed instructions for healthcare professionals can be found in the notification.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) regulates medicines, medical devices and blood components for transfusion in the UK. MHRA is an executive agency, sponsored by the Department of Health and Social Care.