UK FM Liz Truss fails to name one instant when she raised human rights concerns with Gulf states

UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss failed to name one instant when she raised human rights concerns with Gulf states amid a tough line of questioning by Britain’s foreign affairs committee on Tuesday. 

The Conservative cabinet minister came under fire from fellow British MPs for the Foreign Office's chummy approach to Saudi Arabia and other oil-rich Gulf countries accused of serious human rights violations. 

Labour MP Chris Bryant asked the Conservative MP for South West Norfolk about the last time she discussed human rights with Gulf leaders, to which she first denied remembering any specific occasion and then said she couldn't discuss private conversations. 

This is going to be the clip that goes viral.

Asked by @RhonddaBryant if Saudi Arabia is an "authoritarian regime", Truss pauses for a while and then tries to answer a different question all together. pic.twitter.com/HwxzWPtzlT

— Sam (@EditorBTB) June 28, 2022

"I certainly have raised [human rights] when I was in… I’m just trying to remember my most recent visit, but I can assure you I have raised it," she said. 

When pressed, the foreign secretary said: "I'm not going to go into all the details of private conversations." 

Amid a global fuel crisis sparked in part by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, western states have tried to strengthen ties with Gulf states - namely, Saudi Arabia - in order to reduce their dependency on Moscow's oil resources. While the UK is less reliant than other European states on Russian oil, it has also been keen to strengthen ties with Gulf states.

However, human rights groups have repeatedly raised concerns over UK allyship we what they see as an  autocratic regime. The de facto leader of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman,  has overseen a brutal crackdown on freedom of expression and dissent in the kingdom. 

Truss, whom some speculate is next in line for Tory leadership given recent scandals involving Boris Johnson, said to the foreign affairs committee: "We are not dealing with a perfect world. 

"We are dealing in a world where we have to make difficult decisions and I think it is right that we build that closer trading relationship with the Gulf states."