Leigh Turner
Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna
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UK in Austria
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17th April 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Ukraine is, with Russia, amongst the countries in Europe with the highest rates of HIV infection. In Ukraine around 60 people are infected daily and over 235,000 people live with HIV/AIDS. So I was delighted when Alliance Ukraine, a member of the Brighton-based International HIV/AIDS Alliance, organised a visit to Ukraine recently by Lord Fowler, […]
Read more on HIV/AIDS and needle exchanges in Ukraine | Reply (1)
5th April 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Will Ukraine seize the once-in-a-generation opportunity of Euro 2012 to showcase its European credentials? How about the October parliamentary elections – a litmus test for democracy in Ukraine? These questions are the subject of a powerful article by the British Minister for Europe, David Lidington, in the Ukrainian newspaper “Den” on 5 April.
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4th April 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Guest blog by Major Kirsty Baxter, Assistant Military Attaché Kyiv There is an explosion; then we hear the screams for help. Quickly we turn and jog back down the path. Our group of military attachés and Ukrainian officers find a badly injured sergeant, his foot blown off by a mine booby-trap. As he begs for […]
Read more on UK-Ukraine leadership training in Crimea | Reply (1)
23rd March 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I blogged last week about how an early invitation to OSCE/ODIHR1 to send observers to the October 2012 parliamentary elections would be a “quick win” to help Ukraine show its commitment to democracy. I subsequently saw a tweet from Foreign Minister Hryshchenko on 19 March saying that he had just signed off such an invitation. […]
Read more on Ukraine’s 2012 elections: a welcome move | Reply
22nd March 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I am frequently alerted by commercial contacts to difficulties with the Ukrainian business environment; and have often blogged on this subject. So it was interesting to hear from a leading independent economist recently the view that there had been some progress on macroeconomic reform recently. The economist said this had included: – The 2011 Pension reform […]
Read more on Ukrainian economic success? | Reply (3)
21st March 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
There are many excellent cities in Ukraine. But I have always had a soft spot for Lviv since I spent two weeks staying with a family there to learn Ukrainian. It’s also where I started blogging. So I was delighted to visit the city again this month for meetings with regional and city politicians; to […]
Read more on Lviv awakes | Reply (2)
20th March 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Do you know your C++ from your Sybase? Do you know the difference between SQL and ORM? If you do, high-paying jobs could be yours – in Kyiv, Lviv or Kharkiv. Back in summer 2010 I blogged about how UK-based Barclays Capital, working with EPAM Systems, had chosen Kyiv for its third global technology centre, […]
Read more on Buzzwords, Barclays, and a Ukrainian economic success | Reply (1)
16th March 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I blogged recently about the good example set by women ambassadors, and about the growing number of British women ambassadors. Those interested in these issue (NB – should be all of us) may wish to check out the fine blog “Girls Allowed” by my colleague Sian MacLeod, ambassador in Prague. Not only does it present […]
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12th March 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The atmosphere in the press conference is electric. TV and video crews cram the aisles. Finally, the OSCE/ODIHR mission announce that, in their view, the 2010 Ukrainian presidential election has met most OSCE and Council of Europe commitments. Leaders of the mission talk of “an impressive display of democratic elections” and “a well-administered and truly […]
Read more on Ukraine’s 2012 elections: OSCE/ODIHR observers | Reply (3)
7th March 2012
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
This time last year I published a blog, Ambassadors in high heels, drawing attention to the importance of female diplomats both as high-impact top performers and as role models. This recorded the excellent tale of our then ambassador in Baku, Carolyn Browne, discussing with upwardly-mobile female diplomats in Azerbaijan the potential conflict between looking one’s […]
Read more on Ambassadors in high heels heading your way? | Reply