Tag: Ukraine

Council to recognise Ukrainian leaders

Edinburgh councillors will consider granting the most prestigious honour it can bestow to the Ukrainian President and the Mayor of Edinburgh’s twin city, Kyiv.

In recognition of heroically standing by their country and their citizens to lead the fight against the invasion of Ukraine, Council Leaders are seeking support to confer the Freedom of the City jointly to President Volodymyr Zelensky and Mayor Vitali Klitschko, in a Motion (Item 8.1).

The Freedom of the City is a tradition that dates back over 560 years to 1459, with Her Majesty the Queen and Sir Chris Hoy the only living individuals with the Scottish Capital’s freemanship. It can only be ‘bestowed upon those who are held in the highest esteem’.

The symbolic gesture will be considered at a meeting of the Council on Thursday (17 March), alongside a further Motion (Item 8.2), which condemns Russia’s ‘horrific and illegal attacks on the Independence of Ukraine, their people, and their homes’ and outlines further practical steps Edinburgh may take to support humanitarian efforts and those displaced by the crisis.

If the Motion is agreed, up to £100,000 of Council funding would be targeted towards coordinating local efforts with the Edinburgh Partnership. This would help Edinburgh maximise supplies to Ukraine, support local infrastructure for facilitating donations as well as the transport of supplies to Poland and elsewhere.

Other steps would see letters sent to the Home Office, UK Foreign Office and MOD to seek clarity and support for victims of the war arriving in Edinburgh – particularly children – and ask for help with temporary accommodation.

In an additional display of solidarity with Ukraine, a ban on Russian cultural events and performances in Council-owned venues could be set (further to the cancellation of a Russian concert at the Usher Hall) and the Council would end its relationship with the Russian Consulate.

Council Leader Adam McVey said: “We all stand shoulder to shoulder with the Ukrainian people in fighting this oppressive Russian regime and we will do everything we possibly can to support them.

“Following the city summit I hosted with the Depute Leader last week, with the Acting Consul General for Ukraine and local community leaders, we are now setting out a series of steps we can take together as a city.

“As part of this, we’re bringing forward Motions to ask Councillors to stand with us in condemning Putin’s tyranny, and intend to offer the Freedom of the City of Edinburgh to the President of Ukraine and Mayor of Kyiv.

“By remaining in Kyiv, they are fighting side-by-side with their citizens against the Russian invasion, in a true defence of their nation. This is not just in recognition of their own leadership and bravery, but the bravery of all Ukrainians battling for their nation.

“With members’ agreement, we will write to the Home Office encouraging unrestricted refugee visas and local working to source host families to house refugees, with a focus on those with cultural and language understanding to best support unaccompanied children.

“The experiences of those fleeing their homes and their country is heart-breaking and we are looking at how we can help those who seek refuge, but we also need the Home Office to outline a plan.”

Depute Leader Cammy Day said: “Edinburgh has a strong Scottish-Ukrainian population and many of us have heard stories from local friends and family members about the atrocities people in Kyiv and across Ukraine are facing.

“We pride ourselves on the warm welcome we offer to those in desperate need of our help and I hope we can drive forward support for refugees.

“The outpouring of grief and support from Edinburgh people has been incredible and we won’t stop flying the Ukrainian flag until the war is brought to an end. The Granton gasholder being lit up is yet another symbol of our solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

“We want to show our admiration for the outstanding leadership of the President and of the Mayor of our twin city, Kyiv. They are standing by their constituents and their country and heroically leading Ukraine’s response to invasion.

“Parties of all colours have already told us they agree – the Freedom of the City is the highest civic honour we can offer Mr Zelensky and Mr Klitschko – and if confirmed with a formal vote next week we will be able to take this forward.”

Both Motions will be raised by the Council Leaders on Thursday, following a City Summit held last week with the Acting Consul General of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Church in Edinburgh, Police, ETAG and the University of Edinburgh to drive forward Edinburgh’s efforts.

The Council has already supported the Gas holder in Granton to be lit up blue and yellow and is flying the Ukrainian flag from the City Chambers. The Lord Provost has also written to the Mayor of Kyiv outlining Edinburgh’s deepest sorrow for events, and the Council is reviewing all investments and contracts for Russian ties.

Citizens, businesses and organisations who wish to support aid efforts can make a donation to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Ukraine Appeal.

This is a co-ordinated effort with the Red Cross, Christian Aid, Oxfam and Save The Children.

HMRC to help Ukraine aid exports

Moving aid and donations to the people of Ukraine will be made easier thanks to a customs easement, the UK Government has announced.

The simplification of customs processes will apply to goods intended to support those affected by the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine which are exported from GB. Provided the goods are not exported to, or through, Russia or Belarus, then these simplified processes apply to qualifying goods regardless of the destination to allow maximum flexibility to get aid to where the need is greatest.

The Government still recommends that organisations and people who would like to help donate cash through trusted charities and aid organisations, rather than donating goods. Cash can be transferred quickly to areas where it’s needed and individuals and aid organisations can use it to buy what’s most needed.

However, businesses, charities and community organisations sending aid from GB ports will be able to make a customs declaration by speaking to customs officers or simply by the act of driving through a port.

They will no longer need to complete and submit electronic customs declarations to HMRC before exporting these goods, and smaller movements will not need to use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service to pass through ports where it is in operation.  

The easement will also remove other customs formalities, such as needing to notify HMRC when the goods have been exported.

The Rt Hon Lucy Frazer QC MP, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, said: “People and businesses across the UK have already responded with immense generosity, donating millions of pounds to support those forced to flee their homes as a result of the war in Ukraine.

“Government advice remains that the best way to help the Ukrainian people is to donate money through the Disasters Emergency Committee or other trusted charities.

“However, we appreciate that people and businesses may still wish to donate aid directly to the region, so this new customs easement will ensure that humanitarian aid is fast -tracked from GB to help those most affected.”

The easement, which excludes all controlled goods and dual use goods, will be in place for a limited time, which will be announced in due course.

Defence Secretary: ‘United Kingdom continues to play a leading role in supporting Ukraine’

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace gave a statement to the House of Commons on Ukraine yesterday:

With permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to update the House on the situation in Ukraine and Her Majesty’s Government’s support to the Government in Kyiv.

The situation on the ground is grave. As we can recall, on 24 February, forces of the Russian army, unprovoked, crossed into Ukraine’s sovereign territory. Along three main axes, Russian armour has attempted to occupy Ukraine. Its plan was to reach and encircle Kyiv, encircle Ukrainian forces near the border and invade from the south to link up with its forces via Mariupol.

Russian high command committed 65% of its entire land forces, which are indisputably in possession of overwhelming firepower and armour. It is estimated that at the start of the invasion they had between 110 and 120 battalion tactical groups dedicated to the task, compared with approximately 65 in Ukraine.

Their missile stocks gave them even greater strength to reach Ukraine at distance. However, what they did not and still do not possess is the moral component so often needed for victory.

After 14 days of the war, according to the Ukrainian general staff, at 6 March, Russian casualties were assessed to include 285 tanks, 985 armoured fighting vehicles, 109 artillery systems, 50 multiple launch rocket systems, 44 aircraft, 48 helicopters and 11,000 soldiers, who have lost their lives needlessly.

There are numerous reports of surrenders and desertions by the ever-growingly disillusioned Russian army. To be clear, those are Ukrainian figures; I have to caution the House that we have not verified them by defence intelligence or other means.

I can announce to the House our assessment that, of the initial Russian objectives, only one has been successfully achieved.

While Russian forces are in control of Kherson, Melitopol and Berdyansk in southern Ukraine, they currently encircle the cities of Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Mariupol but are not in control of them.

In addition, their first day objective of targeting Ukrainian air defence has failed, preventing total air dominance. The Ukrainian armed forces have put up a strong defence while mobilising the whole population.

President Putin’s arrogant assumption that he would be welcomed as a liberator has deservedly crumbled as fast as his troops’ morale.

For our part, the United Kingdom continues to play a leading role in supporting Ukraine. On 17 January, I announced to the House the Government’s intention to supply military aid to the Ukrainian armed forces.

The aid took the form of body armour, helmets, boots, ear defenders, ration packs, rangefinders and communication equipment, and for the first time it also included weapons systems. The initial supply was to be 2,000 new light anti-tank weapons (NLAWs), small arms and ammunition.

In response to further acts of aggression by Russia, we have now increased that supply. I can update the House that, as of today, we have delivered 3,615 NLAWs and continue to deliver more. We will shortly be starting the delivery of a small consignment of anti-tank Javelin missiles as well. I want to assure the House that everything we do is bound by the decision to supply defensive systems and is calibrated not to escalate to a strategic level.

Britain was the first European country to supply lethal aid. I was pleased that not long after a military aid donor conference I held on 25 February, many more countries decided to do the same.

From right across Europe, the donations came. In particular, I want to highlight the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Poland, Romania, the Baltic states, Belgium and Slovenia for their leadership, and we should not ignore the significance of the German Government joining us, in a change of stance, and donating such aid.

Donations are not enough; the delivery of aid to the front line is just as important. Here, again, Britain is leading, because alongside Canada, the United States and Sweden, we have invested in building Ukrainian military capacity since 2015, and we find ourselves able to co-ordinate the delivery alongside our partners.

As the conflict intensifies, the Russians are changing their tactics, so the Ukrainians need to, too. We can all see the horrific devastation inflicted on civilian areas by Russian artillery and airstrikes, which have been indiscriminate and murderous. It is therefore vital that Ukraine maintains its ability to fly and to suppress Russian air attack.

To date, the international community has donated more than 900 man-portable air defence missiles and thousands of anti-tank guided weapons of varying types, as well as various small arms.

However, the capability needs strengthening, so in response to Ukrainian requests the Government have taken the decision to explore the donation of Starstreak high-velocity, man-portable anti-air missiles. We believe that this system will remain within the definition of defensive weapons, but will allow the Ukrainian forces to better defend their skies. We shall also be increasing supplies of rations, medical equipment, and other non-lethal military aid.

As with any war, the civilian population is suffering horrendous hardships. According to the Ukrainian Minister of Education, 211 schools have been damaged or destroyed, and media footage shows Russian strikes hitting kindergartens.

The Chernihiv regional administration reported that the Russian air force was employing FAB-500 unguided bombs against targets in the city, and according to Human Rights Watch, civilians in Mariupol have now been without water and power for almost a week.

President Zelenskyy talked of children dying of thirst. Today the estimated number of Ukrainian civilians killed or injured stands at more than 1,000, but the true figure is expected to be much higher, and I am afraid that worse is likely to come.

It is for that reason that the UK will increase its funding for Ukraine to £220 million, which includes £120 million of humanitarian aid. That will make the United Kingdom the single biggest bilateral humanitarian donor to Ukraine. We are also supporting humanitarian work with the Polish and Romanian Governments on the borders.

As I said in my last statement, we still believe that it is worth trying to build diplomatic pressure on Russia. This week, my good friend the Prime Minister met the Prime Ministers of Canada, the Netherlands and Poland. He also spoke to the leaders of France, Germany and the United States, and the Prime Ministers of Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

The Foreign Secretary is in Washington at the G7, and also attended the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting earlier this month. I myself met the Ukrainian Ambassador just this morning. President Putin should be and can be in no doubt that the international community is united against his actions. It remains strong, and will not back down.

As well as giving direct military support to Ukraine, we continue to bolster our contribution towards NATO’s collective security. NATO Defence Ministers will gather next week in Brussels to discuss the next steps. The UK is doing its bit in giving military support and reassurance to its allies.

We are currently supplying significant air power to NATO, including increased air patrols, with both Typhoons and F-35s for NATO air policing. We have also deployed four additional Typhoons to Cyprus to patrol NATO’s eastern border, and have sent an additional 800 troops to Estonia.

Over the last week, Apache and Chinook helicopters were involved in exercises in Estonia. Meanwhile, HMS Diamond has sailed to the eastern Mediterranean, HMS Northumberland is taking part in a northern deployment, and HMS Grimsby is in the Norwegian sea supporting NATO mine countermeasures.

On Monday HMS Prince of Wales, RFA Tidesurge and HMS Defender joined HMS Albion and RFA Mounts Bay for Exercise Cold Response, a multinational exercise off the coast of Norway, and HMS Richmond will be exercising with the Joint Expeditionary Force.

We have put over 1,000 more British troops on readiness to support humanitarian responses in the bordering countries. Britain’s contribution to NATO is significant and enduring. It is important at this time that, in order to maximise our reassurance and resilience effect, we co-ordinate through NATO and the Supreme Allied Commander Europe.

Few of us will not have been moved by President Zelenskyy’s speech yesterday. His people are fighting for their very survival. His country is united against this aggression, and it is indeed his country’s darkest hour.

Yesterday I saw footage of a Russian armoured train, bristling with guns, heading towards Mariupol. A single brave Ukrainian woman ran to the train and shouted “Slava Ukraini”—unmoved, unintimidated by the guns. That woman’s bravery should inspire us all.

I know that many of our constituents, and our colleagues, are fearful of what will happen next. President Putin and the Kremlin continue to threaten countries that offer help to Ukraine. Their military campaign will, I am afraid, become more brutal and more indiscriminate, but it is my firm belief that our strength to stand up to such bullying comes from our alliances. As long as we stand united, both as a House and as the international community, the Kremlin’s threats cannot hurt us.

We should take strength from the peoples right across Europe who are standing shoulder to shoulder to protect our values—our freedom, our tolerance, our democracy and our free press. That is our shield.

Gasometer lights up for Ukraine

Granton’s iconic gasholder was lit up in the colours of the Ukrainian national flag last night.

The Council in partnership with Edinburgh College hosted members of the local and Ukrainian communities to watch the switch on of the lights as a gesture of solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

This follows city leaders coming together at a summit held last week at the City Chambers to discuss Edinburgh’s ongoing response to the crisis in Ukraine.

Council Leader Adam McVey said: “Last week when we met at the City Chambers with the Ukrainian community, we made a commitment to offer support wherever we can. Lighting the gasholder is a symbol of our support and solidarity with the people of our twin city Kyiv and all of Ukraine.

“As the humanitarian crisis escalates in Ukraine, the people of Edinburgh have been extremely generous in offering support and donating to the Disasters Emergency Committee appeal to help those facing terrifying circumstances as they defend their country.

“We’ll also continue to fly the Ukrainian flag at the City Chambers and take local actions to support Ukraine further and condemn Putin’s illegal war.

Depute Leader Cammy Day said: “There’s more people of Ukrainian descent living in the Capital than anywhere else in Scotland and so we’re lighting up the gasholder as a display of our support for them.

“I’d like to offer my thanks again to the people of Edinburgh for their outpouring of support at this time of crisis for the people of Ukraine. We welcome Ukrainian citizens to Edinburgh and we will do whatever we can to support them.”

Edinburgh College Principal and CEO Audrey Cumberford MBE FRSE said: “By lighting the gasholder in the colours of the Ukrainian flag, we, together with council colleagues, are demonstrating our solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

“At Edinburgh College, we stand with all of those who are suffering as a result of this war and are providing direct support to staff and students who are affected. We will continue to do what we can to support the local Ukrainian community in the city and are proud to play our part in Edinburgh’s collective effort to help.”

Prime Minister: We must match our words on Ukraine with action

“The people of Ukraine will be our judge”

Next week the Prime Minister will call on the international community to make a renewed and concerted effort to ensure Putin fails in Ukraine

  • PM to meet leaders from Canada, Netherlands and Central Europe in London next week
  • Comes as the Prime Minister set out a six point ‘plan of action’ for the international community
  • In the last few days the UK has upped humanitarian and military support to Ukraine and doubled down on diplomatic efforts to isolate Russia

The Prime Minister is to call on the international community to make a renewed and concerted effort to ensure Putin fails in Ukraine.

In the days since Russia invaded Ukraine we have seen an unprecedented wave of international condemnation from across the globe. On Wednesday evening 141 nations voted to denounce Russia’s actions in only the 11th Emergency Special Session of the UN General Assembly ever held.

The same day, 38 countries, coordinated by the UK, led the largest ever referral to the International Criminal Court to ensure Putin will be held to account for his war crimes.

At the same time, more and more countries have stepped up to provide much-needed humanitarian and military support to the people of Ukraine. Nations across the globe have imposed the largest ever package of sanctions against a major economy.

On Monday the Prime Minister will welcome Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau and Dutch Prime Minister Rutte to Downing Street for discussions on how to turn these commitments into a concerted campaign of solidarity with Ukraine. On Friday he spoke to President Macron and the leaders of Turkey and Serbia.

On Tuesday, he will host leaders of the ‘V4’ group of Central European nations – the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. These are countries already experiencing first-hand the humanitarian crisis rapidly engulfing the European continent.

The Prime Minister will tell leaders that, to ensure Putin fails in his ambitions, the international community must come together under a six-point plan of action to:

  1. Mobilise an international humanitarian coalition for Ukraine
  2. Support Ukraine in its efforts to provide for its own self-defence
  3. Maximise the economic pressure on Putin’s regime
  4. Prevent the creeping normalisation of what Russia is doing in Ukraine
  5. Pursue diplomatic paths to de-escalation but only on the basis of full participation by the legitimate government of Ukraine
  6. Begin a rapid campaign to strengthen security and resilience across the Euro-Atlantic area

Setting out his six-point plan tomorrow, the Prime Minister will say: “Putin must fail and must be seen to fail in this act of aggression. It is not enough to express our support for the rules-based international order – we must defend it against a sustained attempt to rewrite the rules by military force.

“The world is watching. It is not future historians but the people of Ukraine who will be our judge.

Last week the UK increased its humanitarian support to Ukraine and the region to £220 million announced this year, including £25 million of match funding to the DEC appeal. The UK continues to supply defensive and lethal weaponry to Ukraine and the Prime Minister has spoken to Ukrainian President Zelenskyy daily to understand the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ needs.

The UK has already implemented the largest and most severe package of economic sanctions ever imposed on a major economy. We have brought in sanctions on President Putin, Sergey Lavrov, five Russian banks and more than 300 individuals and entities at the heart of Putin’s regime, and Belarus. We are preventing the Russian state from raising debt here and isolating all Russian companies from access to UK capital markets.

The government will continue to ratchet up pressure and use sanctions to degrade the Russian economy on a scale that the Kremlin, or any major economy, has ever seen before. On Friday the government announced new provisions to streamline the current legislation so we can respond even more swiftly and effectively to the current crisis.

The Prime Minister will host both Prime Minister Rutte and Prime Minister Trudeau in Downing Street for separate bilateral meetings and a joint trilateral meeting.

Tuesday’s meeting of the V4 will take place in London and include both a plenary session of all five leaders and separate bilateral meetings.

PRIME MINISTER BORIS JOHNSON WRITES:

We must do more for Ukraine

Over the last week, in response to the gut-wrenching scenes in Ukraine, Western unity has been impressive and heartening. I know from my near-daily conversations with President Zelenskyy that this has provided Ukrainians with some comfort in their hour of need.

Never in my life have I seen an international crisis where the dividing line between right and wrong has been so stark, as the Russian war machine unleashes its fury on a proud democracy. Russia’s reckless attack on the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant reminds us just how grave the stakes are for everyone. Millions of people are fleeing from the violence, towards an uncertain future.

President Biden has displayed great leadership, consulting and convening allies, exposing the lie that America’s commitment to Europe is somehow diminished. The European Union has undertaken a remarkable effort to align behind severe sanctions on Russia. Dozens of European countries are now sending defensive equipment to Ukraine’s armed forces. But have we done enough for Ukraine? The honest answer is no.

Putin’s act of aggression must fail and be seen to fail. We must not allow anyone in the Kremlin to get away with misrepresenting our intentions to find post-facto justification for their war of choice. This is not a NATO conflict and it will not become one. No ally has sent combat troops to Ukraine. We have no hostility towards the Russian people and we have no desire to impugn a great nation, a world power and a founding member of the United Nations. We despair of the decision to send young innocent Russians into a bloody and futile war.

The truth is that Ukraine had no serious prospect of NATO membership in the near future – and we were ready to respond to Russia’s stated security concerns through negotiation. I and many other Western leaders have spoken to President Putin to understand his perspective. Mr Putin to understand his perspective. The United Kingdom even sent emissaries to Moscow before Russia’s invasion to deal directly with Defence Minister Gen. Sergei Shoigu and the chief of the general staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, who are spearheading this awful campaign.

It was now clear diplomacy never had a chance. But it is precisely because of our respect for Russia that we find the actions of the Putin regime so unconscionable. He is attempting the destruction of the very foundation of international relations and the United Nations Charter: the right of nations to decide their own future free from aggression and fear of invasion. His assault on Ukraine began with a confected pretext and a flagrant violation of international law. Now it is sinking further into a sordid campaign of war crimes and unthinkable violence against civilians.

Though there can be no comparison with the assault on Ukraine, we in Britain know something of President Putin’s ruthlessness. Four years ago, we endured the outcome of his order to his operatives to use chemical weapons to assassinate people in Salisbury in 2018 – and our allies rallied to our side. In our defence and foreign policy review, published a year ago, we warned that Russia remained the most acute security threat and we announced the biggest increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War.

We also warned that the world was changing for the worse, entering into a period of competition in which authoritarian states would test the mettle of the West in every domain. Last year’s agreement between Britain, America and Australia to build nuclear submarines for the Australian navy demonstrated our shared resolve to meet these challenges in the Indo-Pacific. But we must restore effective deterrence in Europe where, for too long, the very success of NATO and of America’s security guarantee has bred complacency.

We have failed to learn the lessons of Russian behaviour that have led to this point. No one can say we were not warned: we saw what Russia did in Georgia in 2008, Ukraine in 2014 and even on the streets of the British city of Salisbury. And I know from speaking to my counterparts on recent visits to Poland and Estonia just how acutely they feel the threat.

It is no longer enough to express warm platitudes about the rules-based international order. We are going to have to actively defend it against a sustained attempt to rewrite the rules by force and other tools such as economic coercion. What happens in Europe will have profound implications worldwide.

We are pleased to see more nations now beginning to grasp this hard reality. In January, the UK was among a handful of European countries sending defensive aid to Ukraine. Now, more than 25 countries are part of that effort. Defence spending is going up, though it will take time for that to translate into capability.

These are welcome developments, but not going to be enough on their own to save Ukraine or keep the flame of freedom alive. Russia has overbearing force and apparently no regard for the laws of war. We need to prepare now for even darker days ahead.

So must begin a six-point plan for Ukraine, starting today.

First, we must mobilise an international humanitarian coalition. On Monday I will meet the leaders of Canada and the Netherlands in London to talk about creating the widest possible coalition to expose the outrages that are taking place in Ukraine. On Tuesday, I will host the leaders of Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic, now on the frontline of a refugee crisis. The UK has 1,000 troops on standby for humanitarian operations on top of £220 million of aid. We must all work together to establish an immediate ceasefire and allow civilians safe passage, food and medical supplies.

Second, we must do more to help Ukraine to defend itself. More and more nations are willing to provide defensive equipment. We must act quickly to coordinate our efforts to support the legitimate government of Ukraine.

Third, we must maximise the economic pressure on Putin’s regime. We must go further on economic sanctions, expelling every Russian bank from SWIFT. We must go after the oligarchs, as the UK is doing – sanctioning over 300 elites and entities including Putin himself and giving our law enforcement agencies unprecedented powers to peel back the façade of dirty Russian money in London. But these measures will be insufficient unless Europe begins to wean itself off the Russian oil and gas that bankrolls Putin’s war machine.

Fourth, no matter how long it takes, we must prevent any creeping normalisation of what Russia does in Ukraine. The lesson from Russia’s invasion of Georgia in 2008 and seizure of Crimea in 2014 is that accepting the results of Russian aggression merely encourages more aggression. We cannot allow the Kremlin to bite off chunks of an independent country and inflict immense human suffering and then be allowed to creep back into the fold.

Fifth, we should always be open to diplomacy and de-escalation, provided that the legitimate government of Ukraine has full agency in any potential settlement. There can be no new Yalta decided over the heads of the people of Ukraine by external powers.

Sixth, we must act now to strengthen Euro-Atlantic security. This includes bolstering NATO’s eastern flank but also supporting non-NATO European countries that are subject to the same Kremlin playbook, such as Moldova, Georgia and the nations of the Western Balkans. And those who participate or enable Russian aggression, such as Belarus, will be subject to maximum sanctions.

Ukrainians have bravely defended their country. It is their valour that has United the international community. We can’t let them down.

MPs “ashamed” of aspects of UK withdrawal from Afghanistan

Concerns over parallels emerging in the UK’s response to Ukraine crisis

The UK Government failed to work effectively or quickly enough to provide support for aid workers and the Afghan people, says a new report from the International Development Committee – Afghanistan: UK support for aid workers and the Afghan people.

The Committee is also concerned about the pace at which the UK Government has disbursed pledged UK aid to Afghanistan and whether it will act swiftly enough to disburse pledged UK aid to Ukraine.

MPs say that the UK Government, in its response to Afghanistan and now Ukraine, has:

  • been inflexible in its response to an acute humanitarian situation by only making limited concessions to pre-existing UK immigration routes;
  • failed to provide sufficient clarity on what routes are available; and
  • dragged its feet in setting up new or variations to existing routes.

The UK Government has a moral duty towards aid workers who helped to deliver UK aid projects in Afghanistan, asserts the report.

This moral duty also extends to the people of Afghanistan, impacted over decades by the UK’s military and political interventions.

Chair of the International Development Committee, Sarah Champion MP, said: “We are deeply grateful to aid workers – be they British, Afghan or of other nationalities – for all they have done for the people of Afghanistan. The work that they do is phenomenal.

“But we are ashamed that the Government did not give them the support that they needed during the UK’s withdrawal, or now, during the complex task of delivering an aid programme under Taliban rule.

“More than 23 million people, over half the population of Afghanistan, are facing starvation. The Government must provide the support and the clarity that people working in the aid sector in Afghanistan have told us that they need.”

The Chair draws parallels with the developing situation in Ukraine. She said: “By only making limited concessions to pre-existing UK immigration routes, the response from the Home Office to the situation in Ukraine shows an inflexible and begrudging approach to an acute humanitarian situation.

“As in Afghanistan, there has been a lack of clarity – and agonizing slowness of pace – in explaining what UK immigration routes are available. The UK Government should be significantly more agile in establishing or adapting existing UK immigration routes in response to acute humanitarian crises. The safety of countless people and their families depends on it.”

UK and allied forces left Afghanistan in August 2021. The Taliban takeover was rapid. The scale of the humanitarian response required, had – to that date – been unprecedented. The humanitarian jeopardy has been extreme.

At the same time, the safety of aid workers has been compromised. Today, the cross-party Committee thanks aid workers for all their work, past and present, and reveals ‘shame’ that the UK Government has not given them the support or clarity that they need.

The Government’s contingency plans for the evacuation of aid workers from Afghanistan were neither apparent to the aid sector, nor scaled adequately. Government schemes have not adequately supported those aid workers seeking safe passage to the UK.

The report reveals that some Afghans who worked on projects funded by the UK Government are reporting that their lives are at risk of reprisals from the Taliban authorities.

The UK Government has pledged significant sums of aid since its withdrawal from Afghanistan, but the release of that aid to the people who desperately need it has been excruciatingly slow. A cash liquidity crisis is strangling the remaining life out of the country. Sanctions against the Taliban have stifled the provision of aid and women, children and minority groups are suffering disproportionately.

The Committee concludes that the Government should have worked faster to disburse the UK aid it pledged to Afghanistan in 2021. It should also have liaised more effectively and swiftly with the aid sector, international allies and financial institutions to help to resolve the challenges of sanctions to the aid sector; address the collapse of the banking system in Afghanistan; and free up the nominated funds frozen in the World Bank’s Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund.

Some of the Committee’s key recommendations in respect of aid workers and the Afghan people are:

  • The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office should take steps to better identify and assess the particular risks facing aid workers so that it can respond more effectively to those aid workers when they are in need of support in countries or regions where there is acute instability or signs of a rapidly deteriorating security situation.
  • The Government should accelerate without further delay all pathways of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) and ensure that aid sector staff are explicitly recognised and prioritised for protection under the ACRS.
  • The UK Government should be taking more urgent steps to collaborate with its international counterparts, economists, representatives of the banking sector and aid organisations to find ways to help address more rapidly the banking crisis in Afghanistan to ease the humanitarian suffering of, and enable the delivery of humanitarian assistance to, the people of Afghanistan.
  • The UK Government should do more to encourage the World Bank to swiftly release the remaining funds from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund so that aid organisations can use that money to provide humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan.
  • The Government should maintain its focus on working to try and ensure that the Taliban adopts a moderate position whereby it commits to behaving pragmatically towards the inclusion of women, girls and other minority groups in Afghan society.
  • The UK Government should further step up its efforts on working with the UN to ensure that aid organisations can effectively operate under the exemptions that UN resolution 2615 (and consequent UK law) permits. It should also urge the UN Security Council to extend those exemptions beyond their initial 12 months review period.
  • The UK Government should consult with representatives of aid organisations to ensure that it has issued adequate guidance on how to operate further to the adoption of UN resolution 2615 into UK law. Furthermore, the UK Government should press for UN resolution 2615 to be extended, or further resolutions to be adopted, to provide exemptions for development assistance, closely linked to the performance of the Taliban on upholding human rights and international law.
HoC-Afghnistan-withdrawal-reportDownload

Granton Information Centre collecting donations for Ukraine

It is difficult to watch the events happening in Ukraine on the news without feeling helpless.

The charity GOCC Edinburgh are organising a collection for Ukrainians in need.

If you are able to help, you are welcome to leave donations of UN-OPENED toiletries, packets of nappies/sanitary products at Granton Information Centre’s office (134-138 West Granton Road, EH5 1PE) tomorrow morning between 9.30 – 12 midday and Thursday morning between 9.30 – 12 midday.

We will ensure all donations are safely delivered to GOCC Edinburgh on Thursday afternoon.

PLEASE NOTE we are only able to accept donations of the items listed above (no clothes, medicines, monetary donations, etc will be accepted at our office).

Additional items can be donated directly at the Foodplus stores mentioned in the flyer (below):

British nationals advised to leave Ukraine immediately

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office has updated its travel advice to Ukraine, and is now advising British nationals against all travel to Ukraine.

British nationals currently in Ukraine should leave now while commercial means are still available.

A Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office spokesperson said: “The safety and security of British nationals is our top priority, which is why we have updated our travel advice.

“We urge British nationals in Ukraine to leave now via commercial means while they remain available.“

It’s thought that fewer than one thousand British citizens are currently in Ukraine.

The Prime Minister held a virtual meeting with the leaders of the US, Canada, Italy, Poland, Romania, France, Germany, the European Council, the European Commission and NATO to discuss the situation in Ukraine last night.

The Prime Minister told the group that he feared for the security of Europe in the current circumstances.

He impressed the need for NATO Allies to make it absolutely clear that there will be a heavy package of economic sanctions ready to go, should Russia make the devastating and destructive decision to invade Ukraine.

The Prime Minister added that President Putin had to understand that there would be severe penalties that would be extremely damaging to Russia’s economy, and that Allies needed to continue with efforts to reinforce and support the Eastern frontiers of NATO. He urged the leaders to work together to deliver economic and defensive support to Ukraine.

The leaders agreed that if President Putin de-escalated, there was another way forward, and they pledged to redouble diplomatic efforts in the coming days.