The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Philip Hammond

  • Britain dismisses report of worsening relations between May, Hammond

    Britain’s Defence Minister on Thursday dismissed a Times newspaper report suggesting that relations between Prime Minister Theresa May and her finance minister, Philip Hammond, had deteriorated.

    The Times newspaper said relations between the teams of the two most senior members of government had deteriorated following a series of disagreements over policy and presentation ahead of a June 8 election.

    Fallon was however asked about the front page report and he said he would have thought John you would be the last person to fall for such tittle-tattle.

    “Philip Hammond, (interior minister) Amber Rudd, Theresa May, (foreign minister) Boris Johnson and I in the cabinet are working together,’’ he said.

  • Brexit: UK won’t disrespect EU treaties – Minister

    Brexit: UK won’t disrespect EU treaties – Minister

    Britain will respect its obligations under European Union treaties while it seeks to strengthen trade ties with world partners, the British finance minister said on Friday.

    Philip Hammond told reporters, arriving to a meeting of EU finance ministers in Brussels that Britain would continue to abide by the treaties of EU.

    British Prime Minister Theresa May will meet later on Friday with U.S. President Donald Trump, seeking to enhance the UK’s trade relations with Washington as it prepares to start its divorce talks with the EU.

    “We will continue to abide by the rules, regulations and the laws of the European Union for so long as we are members,” Hammond said.

    “Of course we want to strengthen our trade ties with the very many trade partners we have around the world.

    “But we are very mindful of our obligations under the treaty and will follow them precisely.”

    He said that Britain “remains a fully engaged member of the European Union.”

  • Anti-IS coalition meets in London

    Foreign ministers from 22 countries are meeting in London to discuss ways to co-ordinate their efforts to combat the jihadist group, Islamic State.

    IS controls large swathes of Syria and Iraq and the United States-led coalition has been carrying out air strikes since August.

    But United Kingdom Foreign Secretary, Philip Hammond, insisted much more needed to be done.

    He told the BBC that the countries wanted to find ways to halt the flow of recruits to IS, cut off its funding and “tackle the underlying narrative.”

    They will also look at providing more military assistance to those fighting IS on the ground, and more humanitarian aid to its victims.

    The BBC says the recent attacks by Islamist militants in France have put even greater political pressure on governments to show decisive results.

    Before leaving Washington to co-host Thursday’s talks with Mr. Hammond, U.S Secretary of State, John Kerry, said violent extremists hoped such attacks would drive the coalition apart.

    “But in fact, their actions have had the opposite effect,” he stressed. “They’re bringing us together with greater determination, with greater resolve to be able to get the job done.”

    A senior U.S state department official said foreign fighters would be the “real focus” of the London conference, and that an expert working group would be formed to discuss sharing information to stop them travelling.

    The European police agency, Europol, estimates that up to 5,000 European Union citizens have travelled to Syria and Iraq to fight. Thousands of others have travelled from Arab and Muslim states.

  • Iran nuclear talks deadline extended

    Iran nuclear talks deadline extended

    Monday’s talks were the final day of a lengthy session in Vienna

    The deadline for an Iran nuclear deal has been extended to the end of June after talks in Vienna failed to reach a comprehensive agreement.

    UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said good progress had been made, but it was “not possible to get an agreement by the [original] deadline”.

    Six world powers want Iran to curb its nuclear programme in return for the lifting of sanctions.

    Tehran says it is not seeking nuclear weapons, but wants atomic energy.

    The six countries – the US, UK, Russia, China, France and Germany – have been in negotiations with Iran to finalise a preliminary deal reached last year in Geneva.

    Speaking after the Vienna talks had ended, Mr Hammond said that negotiations would resume in December, and would be extended until 30 June 2015.

    Iran would be allowed to continue accessing $700m (£450m) per month in frozen assets during that period.

    Diplomats expect to reach a political agreement by 1 March, with the full technical details of the agreement confirmed by 1 July.

    Speaking to the BBC, Mr Hammond said that the failure to agree a deal was “a disappointment, but rather than continue blindly we have to recognise the reality that we’re not going to make a deal tonight”.

    Benjamin Netanyahu: “Don’t give these violent medievalists atomic bombs”

    He said he was aware that hardliners opposed to any deal were vocal both in Iran and the US, which was why talks would continue again in December.

    Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is to give a national address at 18:00 GMT, Iranian news agencies reported.

    The key sticking points in the negotiations were thought to have been the future size of Iran’s uranium enrichment programme, and the timing of sanctions relief.

    Highly enriched uranium can be used to make a nuclear bomb, but uranium enriched to lower levels can be used for energy purposes.

    Under the terms of international treaties, countries have the right to develop nuclear energy, which Iran insists is its only aim.

    However, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says it has been unable to confirm Tehran’s assertions that its nuclear activities are exclusively for peaceful purposes.

    The United Nations Security Council has adopted six resolutions since 2006 requiring Iran to stop enriching uranium, with sanctions to persuade Iran to comply.

    The US and EU have imposed additional sanctions on Iranian oil exports and banks since 2012, hitting Iran’s oil revenue badly.

  • UK confirms holding up to 90 Afghans

    UK confirms holding up to 90 Afghans

    British forces are detaining 80 to 90 Afghan nationals in a holding facility at Camp Bastion, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond has confirmed.

    United Kingdom lawyers acting for eight of the men said they had been held for up to 14 months without charge in what could amount to unlawful detention.

    They compared it to when the public became aware of Guantanamo Bay and want the UK High Court to free the men.

    But Mr. Hammond said their release would put British troops at risk.

    BBC reports that British forces in Afghanistan are allowed to detain suspects for 96 hours.

    However, in “exceptional circumstances” – to gather critical intelligence, for example – they can hold them for longer.

    The lawyers said their clients were arrested by British soldiers in raids in villages in Helmand and Kandahar provinces and have been held for between eight and 14 months without charge.

    But the defence secretary dismissed claims that the UK is operating a secret facility in Afghanistan as “patently absurd.”

    Mr. Hammond told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that Parliament had been informed by this government and the previous one about the detention of Afghan suspects.

    He declined to say how long some had been held and said the precise number of detainees fluctuated.

    A spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Defence, General Zahir Azimi said the detentions were illegal and inhumane.