Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Strategically Important Non-aligned Countries

Tuesday 2 May 2023 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Minister made a speech in December committing to revive old friendships and build new ones beyond traditional alliances.
  • Minister mentioned traveling to several countries categorized as strategically important non-aligned nations.
  • Foreign Secretary's colleague is leading conversations on behalf of the UK Government regarding international financial institutions and green finance.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Marco Longhi
Foreign Affairs
Context

The MP is concerned about the UK's diplomatic relations and seeks to understand specific steps being taken.

Question

What steps he is taking to increase diplomatic engagement with strategically important non-aligned countries. Does the Secretary of State agree that we should have strong international relations with countries such as Brazil, which has non-aligned observer status, but is a country with huge wealth in food, energy and precious minerals and is therefore strategically important for a global UK on an increasingly volatile planet?

Answer from James Cleverly

In December I made a speech in which I committed to a long-term effort to revive old friendships and build new ones, reaching beyond our traditional alliances. I have travelled to a number of countries that fall into that category, as have my ministerial colleagues and friends. I commend the hon. Friend on the work he has done in building not only trade links but a strong bilateral relationship between the UK and Brazil. I will be seeking to reinforce his efforts on my forthcoming trip to Brazil because it is an important and influential country with huge natural resources.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer did not provide specific steps or commitments beyond mentioning travel and reinforcing previous work.

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Q2 Marco Longhi
Climate Foreign Affairs
Context

The MP is concerned about the UK's influence with non-aligned countries and suggests using funds from European Investment Bank to lead the argument for a bigger World Bank.

Question

One of the fastest ways we could transform our influence with non-aligned countries is to step up and help to lead the debate about the availability of green and development finance. Is that an argument that the Foreign Secretary is prepared to lead now?

Answer from James Cleverly

We are, and my right hon. Friend the Development Minister is personally leading the conversation on behalf of the UK Government about international financial institutions being more active in that very field, to ensure that they look again at their risk appetite so that we can unlock the trillions of dollars of available finance to help countries transition from hydrocarbon sources of energy to renewable sources. That is a conversation we have regularly both bilaterally and multilaterally.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer did not address using funds specifically or committing to the exact proposal made by the MP.

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