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<p>Human Rights, including lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender (LGBT) rights, are a regular feature of bilateral discussions with the Russian authorities. The Prime Minister raised concerns about the protection of human rights for LGBT people with President Putin in their bilateral meeting at the G20 summit on 6 September. He made clear the strength of feeling about the Russian law prohibiting the promotion of “non-traditional sexual relations” to minors, which has the potential to prevent LGBT people from fully enjoying the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the right hon. Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), discussed the issue again with Foreign Minister Lavrov at the UN General Assembly in New York on 25 September. The issue of LGBT rights was a key theme of the most recent Human Rights Dialogue with Russia in May this year. The Foreign Secretary and I regularly raise human rights with our counterparts and will continue to do so.</p> |