Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs

A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy

10th October 2014

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by Paul Madden

British Ambassador to Japan

Indian Ocean Rim Association ministers meet in Perth

The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) is not one of the most well known international regional groupings. But it is of growing significance. The 20 countries who flank the world’s third largest ocean represent more than a quarter  of the world’s population, and include African, Arab and Asian nations. Around half the world’s cargo ships and two thirds […]

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10th October 2014

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by Leigh Turner

Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna

How bad is corruption in Turkey? (Part 2)

Back in February 2013 I wrote a blog called “How bad is corruption in Turkey?”  It noted that in the latest Transparency International Corruption Index, published in December 2012, Turkey had improved its ranking by 7 places to 54th place, putting it ahead of some EU countries. In December 2013, Transparency International produced its latest […]

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9th October 2014

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by Edward Ferguson

British Ambassador to the Republic of Serbia

Elections: Leadership and moderation please

I recently visited Srebrenica with a group of visitors as part of a UK Government-funded project which aims to learn the lessons of Europe’s only genocide since the Second World War, and to apply them to improving relationships between diverse communities in the UK. During the visit, I met a number of mothers who had […]

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9th October 2014 Sana’a, Yemen

Jane Marriott, British Ambassador to Yemen

by Jane Marriott

British Ambassador to Yemen

GIRLS TOGETHER

Friday the 11th of October is International Day of the Girl and an opportunity to reflect on the challenges that girls all over the world still face every day. In July of this year, the UK and UNICEF sponsored Girl Summit, an event held in a school in London which aimed to galvanise a global […]

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8th October 2014 Toronto, Canada

International Astronautical Congress 2014

The Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute hosted the 65th International Astronautical Congress 2014 last week, packing thousands of attendees into the Metro Toronto Convention Centre for one of the world’s premier space events. The UK was very well-represented, with the UK Space Agency staking out a large booth on the exhibition floor and almost 100 […]

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8th October 2014 Hanoi, Vietnam

Giles Lever, UK Ambassador to Vietnam

by Giles Lever

British Ambassador to Vietnam

Good to be back

Hello, and welcome to what I plan to be a regular blog about my work as the British Ambassador to Vietnam. Although I only arrived here at the end of July, I’m not a stranger to Vietnam. I worked here in the 1990s as a young diplomat. When people hear this, their first question is […]

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8th October 2014

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by Edward Ferguson

British Ambassador to the Republic of Serbia

Contemplations of a new arrival in Bosnia and Herzegovina

I arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina in July, and was lucky enough to spend a month improving my language skills in Mostar and in Banja Luka before arriving in Sarajevo to take up my post as the new British Ambassador. I have decided to start a blog in order to share some of my own […]

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