Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs

A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy

23rd December 2015

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by Keith Allan

British High Commissioner to Mauritius

20th Anniversary of the Russian Polar Convoy Club

The Russian Polar Convoy Club of St Petersburg celebrated its 20th anniversary on 19 December. We were delighted that five British veterans of the Arctic Convoys, all in their 90s, travelled from the UK and US (two emigrated after WWII) to participate in anniversary events. A packed three day programme included wreath laying at Piskariovskoye […]

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22nd December 2015 Madrid, Spain

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by Daniel Pruce

British Ambassador to the Philippines and to Palau

The UK meets its promise to resettle 1,000 refugees before Christmas

During the Kosovo crisis in 1999 I saw at first hand the tens of thousands of Kosovar Albanian refugees seeking shelter in neighbouring countries. It showed me the utter misery of being a refugee, fleeing for your life, with your barest possessions, struggling to look after your loved ones, facing uncertainty and vulnerability. Those memories […]

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22nd December 2015 Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

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by Edmund Fitton-Brown

British Ambassador to Yemen

Yemen UN Consultations – A Step on the Path to Peace

On Sunday 20 December, the first round of UN-brokered consultations on Yemen concluded in Switzerland.  All parties at the talks agreed a Communiqué summarising the progress they made and committing to attend the next round of talks, which will begin on 14 January 2016. The international community was not invited by the UN to attend […]

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21st December 2015

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by Nigel Baker

Ambassador to the Holy See (2011-2016)

Remembering Middle-Eastern Christians

As we celebrate Christmas, it is right to think of those Christian families who will find it difficult to enjoy the good cheer that we take for granted at this time. They are those who are being persecuted or discriminated against for their faith, who are refugees because they were forced to flee for their […]

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18th December 2015

Ben Giddings

Ben Giddings

European Digital Transformation Manager

Soft Skills in Hard Times video blog series(VII): Ben Giddings

Last in a series of video blogs looking at soft skills is Ben Giddings, European Digital Transformation Manager. Ben Giddings and his team oversee digital activity in Europe.  In this video, he explains how British embassies and British diplomats make the best use of digital platforms.

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18th December 2015 Dublin, Ireland

Clive Jones

Deputy Director Cyber Security, UK Trade & Investment Defence & Security Organisation (UKTI DSO)

Challenges and solutions of cyber security for public and private sector

There is no doubt that cyber security is of growing importance to countries around the world with demand for high quality technology and services booming. Poland is no exception. Last week I spoke at a well-attended cyber security event at the British Embassy in Warsaw. I used this great opportunity to discuss the importance of […]

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18th December 2015 London, UK

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by Alison Daniels

Digital Transformation Leader at UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office

Digital diplomacy in 2015

At the start of 2015 the Digital Transformation Unit set itself an ambitious to do list. After the euphoria of celebrating our first anniversary, the year has been defined by hard graft as we’ve worked with colleagues across the FCO to begin work on how to deliver digital services to British people across the world […]

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17th December 2015 New Delhi, India

Rita Sharma

by Rita Sharma

Head of Newton Fund in India

UK India Science and Innovation relationship soars to new heights!

Within a span of a few weeks UK and India relations in Science and Innovation received a new impetus by a number of high profile visits! In mid-November, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the UK during which he, along with Prime Minister David Cameron announced a number of joint research and innovation initiatives that address […]

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