Foreign Secretary met Brunei Foreign Minister II Dato Erywan at the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers’ Meeting

Press release

Dominic Raab held a meeting with the current Chair of ASEAN and Brunei Foreign Minister II Dato Erywan at the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers’ meeting.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab held a meeting with the current Chair of ASEAN and Brunei Foreign Minister II Dato Erywan at the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers’ meeting. This was the first time a representative from ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) has been invited to attend a G7 foreign ministers’ meeting.

The UK’s invitation to the ASEAN Chair to attend the G7 meeting signals the UK’s emphasis on a closer alignment with the Indo-Pacific region, as outlined in the UK’s Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy published in March.

Today’s meeting between the two Foreign Ministers was the first since ASEAN Leaders agreed to accept the UK’s application for Dialogue Partner status at their meeting in Jakarta on 24 April. The Leaders tasked the ASEAN Foreign Ministers to start work to formalise the UK becoming a Dialogue Partner by the 54th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in August this year.

The UK’s application for Dialogue Partner status recognises the UK’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific region. During today’s talks both Ministers agreed to build deeper UK-ASEAN trade links and security cooperation, while working together to address challenges such as climate change and COVID-19 recovery.

Speaking after the meeting Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said:

Thank you ASEAN Leaders for accepting the UK’s application for Dialogue Partner status. We look forward to even closer cooperation on trade, climate and regional security issues.

During the meeting we also discussed the ongoing situation in Myanmar. I underlined the UK’s steadfast opposition to the military coup and the important role ASEAN can play based on the principles of its Charter .

I look forward to strengthening our commitment to the ASEAN region even further in the coming years.

Other key topics covered during the talks included how best to increase G7 and ASEAN ambition on climate targets ahead of the COP26 summit in Glasgow later this year.

Published 5 May 2021

Foreign Secretary meeting with Heiko Maas, German Foreign Minister, 5 May

Press release

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab met German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas during the G7 Foreign and Development Ministerial Meeting.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab met German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas during the G7 Foreign and Development Ministerial Meeting.

A Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office spokesperson said:

Today the Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas met as part of the G7 Foreign and Development Ministers’ Meeting at Lancaster House.

The two ministers discussed Russia and Ukraine, sharing their concerns about malign Russian activity, and how the UK and Germany can work together to respond collectively to Russia’s destabilising behaviour.

They discussed plans for climate action, looking forward to the UK’s hosting of COP26. They also noted the importance of girls’ education and ensuring a fully-financed Global Partnership for Education to drive the global recovery from Covid19.

Finally, they discussed the recent UN-led talks in Geneva aimed to at making progress on resolving the Cyprus issue.

Published 5 May 2021

PM call with Chief Minister of Jersey, Senator John Le Fondré and Minister of External Affairs Ian Gorst: 5 May 2021

Press release

Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke to the Chief Minister of Jersey, Senator John Le Fondré, and the Minister of External Affairs, Ian Gorst.

This evening the Prime Minister spoke to the Chief Minister of Jersey, Senator John Le Fondré, and the Minister of External Affairs, Ian Gorst, about the prospect of a blockade of Saint Helier.

The Prime Minister and Chief Minister stressed the urgent need for a de-escalation in tensions and for dialogue between Jersey and France on fishing access.

The Prime Minister underlined his unwavering support for Jersey. He said that any blockade would be completely unjustified. As a precautionary measure the UK will be sending two Offshore Patrol Vessels to monitor the situation.

They agreed the UK and Jersey Governments would continue to work closely on this issue.

Published 5 May 2021

UK hosts G7 foreign ministers’ meeting in London

the event will be first face-to-face meeting of G7 Foreign and Development Ministers in over 2 years
the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) invited to the G7 Foreign & Development Ministers’ meeting for the first time, alongside India, as UK deepens ties with the Indo-Pacific region
ministers will discuss tackling new global threats, defending democracy, protecting human rights, bold climate action and building back better from the pandemic

G7 foreign and development ministers will travel to London this week for their first in-person gathering in more than 2 years. Talks will be hosted at a COVID-secure venue in the centre of the city from Monday to Wednesday.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will seek to establish ambitious targets on climate finance and girls’ education, a co-ordinated approach to strengthening global health and new measures to prevent famine. He will unite ministers from the world’s leading democracies – including for the first time, a delegation representing ASEAN.

The G7 talks are an opportunity to bring together diplomacy and development to secure significant progress towards the UK’s G7 Presidency goals of building back better together from the COVID-19 pandemic, ahead of the Leaders’ Summit in Cornwall in June.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said:

This week’s G7 meeting shows Global Britain bringing the world’s biggest democracies together to tackle shared challenges.

We’ll be taking action to ensure fair access to vaccines around the world, setting global girls’ education targets, agreeing ambitious action on climate change and developing new measures to prevent famine.

COVID measures will be in place throughout the meetings, to ensure the health and wellbeing of all staff, attendees, and the public. This includes an on-site testing facility at the venue, social distancing measures and Perspex screens to separate delegates in meetings. There will be strict limits on the size of delegations and attendees will be required to take regular tests. The meetings will be a demonstration of how to conduct diplomatic business safely and successfully as we recover from the pandemic.

As well as G7 countries (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the US and UK, plus the EU) the Foreign Secretary has also invited Australia, India, the Republic of Korea, South Africa, and the Chair of the ASEAN, to join parts of this year’s G7 Foreign and Development Ministers’ meeting as guests.

Their attendance will bring broader geographic representation of nations committed to reforming and safeguarding the international order in which open societies and economies flourish. It also demonstrates the importance of the Indo-Pacific region to upholding shared values and norms.

Throughout the week the Foreign Secretary will host bilateral meetings with each of the G7 foreign ministers and invited guests. On Bank Holiday Monday, he will meet US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in London for talks on issues including trade, China, Afghanistan and Iran.

Dominic Raab will also host the Japanese Foreign Minister, Toshimitsu Motegi, at Chevening to deepen trade and security cooperation and agree a shared approach on the security of the Indo-Pacific region.

He will also meet Indian Minister of External Affairs, Dr Jaishankar, at Chevening. They will discuss the UK’s commitment to working with India to tackle COVID-19, following the UK Prime Minister’s pledge that the UK will support India’s fight against the pandemic.

Important documents

Announcements

Bilateral talks

Environment Agency targets Croydon metal sites

Waste sites in Kent and South London got a surprise early knock on the door last week from Environment Agency officers working with the British Transport Police (BTP), Kent Police, the Joint Unit for Waste Crime (JUWC) and Openreach.

Officers from the Environment Agency’s Kent, South London and East Sussex area visited 6 sites in Croydon and Dover as part of a multi-agency week of action targeting metal and vehicle recycling businesses.

They are currently investigating one site found to be illegal where they are carrying out enforcement action to improve compliance with regulations. Meanwhile, a number of vehicles stopped during the week were found to have no waste carrier’s licence or duty of care paperwork.

The intelligence led visits were part of a wider BTP operation targeting the theft of cabling and vehicle catalytic converters, which has been rising across the south east this year.

BTP officers searched sites for stolen metal, in particular catalytic converters that are stolen for the precious metals they contain. A surge in the value of these metals has prompted a significant increase in thefts. A number of stolen vehicles were also recovered during the week. They also checked waste companies’ financial records to ensure they adhered to the 2013 Scrap Metal Dealers Act.

Matt Higginson, Environment Manager for the Environment Agency, said:

This should serve as a warning to those who would flout the law that we and our partners are rooting out waste crime and we won’t hesitate to take action.

Unscrupulous scrap metal sites are accepting stolen catalytic converters and cabling, further fuelling their theft across the south east.

Joint investigations and enforcement will continue and if convicted, those responsible could face extensive fines and even prison sentences.

Phil Davies, Joint Unit for Waste Crime Manager, said:

This week of action is another example of how the JUWC together with other partners and agencies are targeting criminals who exploit the waste industry and harm the environment. Utilising the skills and expertise across agencies we will continue to identify further opportunities to impact upon waste crime.

Anyone who suspects illegal waste activity is reminded to report it to our 24-hour hotline by calling 0800 80 70 60, or anonymously contacting Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

You can check your waste collectors waste carriers registration.

See the British Transport Police press release for details of its activities during the week.

The Joint Unit for Waste Crime was launched in 2020 by the Environment Agency and partners. It brings together environmental regulators and law enforcement agencies to tackle serious and organised waste crime, which is estimated to cost the UK economy at least £600 million year. It also causes great harm to the environment, local communities and businesses.

Everyone involved in the inspections made sure they complied with social distancing rules with correct PPE to make sure everyone involved was safe.