Speeches by Cooper.

“I guess I would just have to ask who it was who did not significantly invest in defence over the past 14 years. This Government are substantially increasing investment in defence, chairing the coalition of the willing, and showing leadership on the international stage. What has struck me since becoming Foreign Secretar…”

“The Prime Minister’s response has been very much in line with the leaders of countries across not just Europe but the world. We continue to stand up for and highlight the importance of international law and focus on the realities in Venezuela, where huge damage has been done over a long time, including by the interfere…”

“I remind my hon. Friend that the Maduro regime was deeply authoritarian and corrupt, and it allowed countries such as Russia and Iran, as well as Hezbollah, to intervene and increase their influence in that country. We should not shed a tear for the end of the Maduro regime; what we should do is work for democracy. Tha…”

“The undersea cable issue is important, and we have considered it not just in terms of UK defence, but internationally. We have discussed it at NATO, and as part of our alliances. It is why we must continue to take much more seriously the operation of the Russian shadow fleet in our waters.”

“We continue to support the UN charter, which is the foundation of our peace and security. We will continue to support it and its principles in all our international debates.”

“I can assure my hon. Friend that we continue to support and uphold the 2016 peace accord. We are the penholder, as he says, so we work closely with the Colombian Government on that, and on how to deal with a range of threats to their stability. I recognise that the Maduro regime contributed to instability in Colombia a…”

“I completely agree with my hon. Friend. It could feel as if the rules-based order is under particular threat and challenge right now, as I raised in my Locarno speech before Christmas. It has probably been under challenge before and it has endured, partly because countries like the UK have continued to advocate for it,…”

“Let me be clear: the UK, Denmark and the US are all members of NATO. That is why it is so important that we continue to ensure the sovereignty of Greenland and of Denmark, and why we have made our views on that particularly clear to the US.”

“We continue to support international law, to promote it, both publicly and privately, with our allies, and to pursue and sustain the alliances that are important as underpinning parts of the rules-based order, including our NATO alliance and our transatlantic alliance. We maintain those long-standing partnerships as pa…”

“I completely agree. The people of Venezuela have been denied that democratic right for far too long. Election results have not been respected, and Venezuelans have faced some of the most horrendous political repression, including on an industrial scale. The July 2024 elections were clearly not respected, and the offici…”

“Venezuela is in a stronger position without Maduro leading it, especially given the horrendous human rights abuses and the huge damage to its economy, but as the right hon. Member implied at the beginning of his question, what happens next is really important. The UK is determined to do everything we can to ensure that…”

“The Monroe doctrine has been interpreted in many different ways over decades and through generations, and historians will dispute that. What I can set out is the UK’s foreign policy approach, which is to stand up for Britain’s security, prosperity and values. That is why we not only stand up for the international rule …”

“I want to begin by expressing my condolences to all those affected by the terrible tragedy in Crans-Montana, and my support for the Swiss authorities. The British embassy has been supporting the family of Charlotte Niddam, who was educated in Hertfordshire and in north-west London. I can confirm that yesterday Charlott…”

“The hon. Member should not make a false equivalence between different situations; it would be inappropriate to do so. We will continue to work with the US in the discussions this week on the defence of Ukraine, which is in itself about maintaining international law and the rules-based order, just as we will continue to…”

“No one should be defending the Maduro regime. I have talked specifically to the US Secretary of State about the transition to democracy. The US has said that this is important, but we need to ensure that those conditions are in place, starting with the ending of political repression.”

“We do not want to see any military action in Greenland, and it should not arise, because this is a fellow NATO country. We are NATO members and we should work on our security together.”

“Obviously, in practice the US does not have boots on the ground in Venezuela, and the vice-president has been sworn in. We continue not to recognise the vice-president’s regime as legitimate in Venezuela and we are continuing to press for a democratic transition. I discussed with the US Secretary of State the importanc…”

“My hon. Friend is exactly right. There is a real risk of instability in Venezuela now, and it will be crucial to build civil society and give people in Venezuela hope, rather than fear. We should ensure stability, building up capacity and work with Opposition parties and other organisations. That is something we are ad…”

“There is always a debate to be had about how to respond to different kinds of hybrid threat and complex threat in different countries, and different interpretations can be made. That is also why we have said that it is for the US to set out its interpretation and its legal basis for any action that it takes, but we con…”

“One reason I spoke to US Secretary of State Rubio yesterday was to engage on what the plans now should be going forward. Given the level of criminal gang operations in Venezuela and the different factions that there have been in the country, preventing greater instability now and ensuring that we can get that stable ba…”