UK position on Israel arms sales remains ‘unchanged’, says Lord Cameron | Politics News

The UK’s position on arms sales to Israel remains “unchanged”, Lord Cameron has said.

The foreign secretary made the comment after being asked about the latest advice his government has received on whether the country has been breaching international law in Gaza.

Number 10 has been facing growing pressure to publish the legal advice it has received about the issue following the killing of seven aid workers, including three British volunteers, last week.

Speaking at a press conference in Washington DC alongside with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Lord Cameron said: “On Israel and international humanitarian law, as required by the UK’s robust arms export control regime, I have now reviewed the most recent advice about the situation in Gaza and Israeli conduct of their military campaign.

“The latest assessment leaves our position on export licences unchanged. This is consistent with the advice that I and other ministers have received and as ever we will keep the position under review.”

However, he added that the UK continues to have “grave concerns around the humanitarian access issue in Gaza, both for the period that was assessed and subsequently”.

While pressure is mounting on the government to publish the legal advice it has received, a number of ministers have warned of a “longstanding convention” that prevents it from doing so.

Lord Cameron repeated that the government does not “publish legal advice, we don’t comment on legal advice, but we act in a way that is consistent with it”.

The government does not directly supply Israel with weapons but does grant export licences for British companies to sell arms to the country.

The Labour Party has demanded that the government publish the legal advice and that it suspend arms sales to Israel if the guidance finds that international law has been broken.

Sir Keir Starmer has resisted backing an embargo without seeing the advice first, and has faced protests for not going further.

Lord Cameron has travelled to the US in an attempt to persuade politicians to support a £60bn (£47bn) financial support package for Ukraine.

The former prime minister insisted he did not want to “lecture” Republicans who are continuing to block the package but warned that failing to do so would have an adverse effect on the West’s security.

I come here with no intention to lecture anybody, or tell anybody what to do or get in the way of the process of politics and other things in the United States,” he said.

“I just come here as a great friend and believer in this country and a believer that it’s profoundly in your interest, and your security, and your future, and the future of your partners, to release this money and let it through.”

Elsewhere in the conference, Lord Cameron was asked about his meeting with Donald Trump – whom he had previously dismissed as “stupid,” “wrong” and “misogynistic”.

He said the meeting with the former US president was “entirely proper” , covered “a range of important geopolitical subjects” and was “in line with precedent of government ministers meeting with opposition politicians in the run-up to elections”.

Asked what had been said of Mr Trump’s position on Ukraine, Lord Cameron replied: “These things are entirely proper but it was a private meeting so I haven’t really got anything to add… but we discussed a range of important geopolitical subjects.”