PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Afghanistan: Sanctions (14 December 2021)

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions her Department is having with HM Treasury on issuing updated sanctions guidance to give aid agencies, banks and other private sector actors greater clarity and confidence on how they can operate in Afghanistan.

Asked by:
Dame Harriett Baldwin (Conservative)

On 1 November, the UK's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation issued new guidance (https://ofsi.blog.gov.uk/2021/11/01/ofsi-updates-charity-sector-guidance/ ) to the charity sector on operating in Afghanistan. This was issued after close collaboration with FCDO, and is kept under constant review. The UK government is working closely with the UN and non-governmental organisations (NGO) to ensure that UK aid benefits Afghans in need while meeting our international obligations. We are providing life-saving humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan through the UN, NGOs and the Red Cross Movement on the ground, who are continuing to ensure vital aid reaches those who need it most. We have made the humanitarian situation and access a major subject of our engagement with the Taliban. They have assured us and the UN that aid workers are able to operate freely, and the UN is reporting that this is broadly happening. We continue to monitor this closely.

Answered by:
Mr James Cleverly (Conservative)
22 December 2021