Select committee: Foreign Affairs Committee
Recommendation 27
Tenth Report - Countries at crossroads: UK engagement in Central Asia
Published 10 Nov 2023
Paragraph 89
Addressed to Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Foreign Affairs Committee The UK’s engagement in Central Asia All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The UK Government needs to be clear-eyed and discerning in its engagement with Central Asian governments, all of which fully understand that there is international competition for their cooperation. There are likely to be many issues which the UK will not be able to cooperate on given the nature of governance and human rights records in those countries. We understand that in some cases governments may undertake significant public relations work to portray progress on human rights and corruption, for example, whilst the reality is the opposite. The UK Government should not be satisfied with unsubstantiated assurances that conditions have been met and instead be prepared to robustly enforce adherence to mutually agreed commitments.
From: Foreign Affairs Committee, Tenth Report - Countries at crossroads: UK engagement in Central Asia (HC 1158), paragraph 89, 10 November 2023
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 25 January 2024 (deadline 10 January 2024).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government agrees with the Committee on the value of closer engagement with Central Asia but responds "Partially Agree" to most recommendations, and "Disagree" to two on illicit finance and sanctions.
- On a Central Asia 5+UK meeting, it agrees and is "exploring opportunities for a Ministerial CA5+UK meeting in 2024", considering the format and agenda.
- On a Diplomatic Academy, it partially agrees, saying it would require "a significant investment in resources" and that the FCDO International Academy's resources are "not currently sufficient"; it will continue to consider informal ways of sharing expertise.
- It disagrees that the UK facilitates kleptocracy through under-enforcement, citing the Economic Crime Acts and a new National Crime Agency Combatting Kleptocracy Cell.
- It disagrees that the REPO Task Force should focus on sanctions evasion in Central Asia, saying it does not have the mandate for regionally focused work, though the UK is prioritising the issue through other channels.