17th July 2025
Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
15th July 2025
International Day of Women in Diplomacy: UK Special Envoy for Women and Girls visit to Geneva
1st May 2025
The UN Commission on the Status of Women: My first visit as UK Special Envoy for Women and Girls
23rd June 2014 Los Angeles, USA
Some things I learned in Sri Lanka: Development, climate change & international negotiations
I spend my days as a Science and Innovation Officer at the Consulate in Los Angeles, but one of my external passions, and one which lead me to this position, is international development. I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to cover the World Conference on Youth in Colombo, Sri Lanka as a Social Media Fellow. […]
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23rd June 2014 Geneva, Switzerland
Human Rights and Carbohydrates
I wonder what Napoleon Bonaparte would have made of the Human Rights Council. I suspect the man who said an army marches on its stomach would ask how on earth we all survive. By week 2, the typical Council diet goes something like this: Breakfast: coffee, and gummy bears (5 minutes). Lunch: a sandwich that […]
23rd June 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Gay Pride in Istanbul: Why it matters
Between 23 and 29 June, Istanbul will be once again be the location for the biggest gay pride festival in the region. Last year more than 100,000 people were reported as participating. The European Commission’s progress report in October 2013 commended the fact that Gay Pride marches in recent years had gone ahead in Turkey without […]
23rd June 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Reviewing History to Look beyond the Myths: 1914 Revisited
I am an historian by training. The disciplines I learnt from studying history at university have remained with me. I dislike general assertions that are not backed by evidence, or based on facts. I like to understand the context of any particular situation, and I’m interested in the causes and consequences of events. Every diplomat […]
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23rd June 2014 Bucharest, Romania
Securitate & apărare: Londra apreciază perspectiva regională a Bucureștiului
Un blog semnat de Însărcinatul cu Afaceri Esther Blythe Astăzi (luni 23 iunie) găzduim o vizită importantă, cea a reprezentanţilor Grupului de prietenie româno-britanică din Parlamentul de la Londra. Parte dintr-o suită de evenimente devenite deja tradiţionale pentru relaţia bilaterală, activitatea grupului de prietenie parlamentară a fost sărbătorită în mod special anul trecut prin prezenţa la […]
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23rd June 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Scotland: the best of all lands and the best of all worlds
On 18 September, voters in Scotland will be asked “Should Scotland be an independent country?”. The UK and Scottish Governments agree that the question is for people in Scotland to decide. The UK Government strongly believes that Scotland’s future is better staying within the United Kingdom, but it has of course pledged to respect the […]
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23rd June 2014 Athens, Greece
Business opportunities as a way of putting Greece back on the exporting map
Guest blogger: Klio Panourgia, Assistant Trade Advisor, UKTI, British Embassy Athens One of the tasks undertaken almost on a daily basis by UKTI teams at posts is the identification and publication of Business Opportunities; these are opportunities that can lead directly to export business for UK companies and can range from general procurement notices to tenders […]
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20th June 2014 Sana’a, Yemen
WORLD REFUGEE DAY: A CHALLENGE FOR OUR TIME
June 20th is World Refugee Day. It’s a day when the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and others around the world seek to draw the public’s attention to the millions of refugees and internally displaced persons worldwide. Many have been forced to flee their homes due to war, conflict and persecution. Yemen is the only […]
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20th June 2014 Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Guest blog: “Women in Business Week”
At the beginning of the month, the Commercial Team at the Embassy ran a series of seminars and workshops in Nukus, Karakalpakstan. The Deputy Head of Mission Alison Beckett blogs below about the experience. Earlier this month I spent the week in Nukus, Karakalpakstan, working with the local Women’s Business Association to run a series […]
20th June 2014 Mumbai, India
UK-India civil nuclear collaboration – phase III
Last week, I spent two days (11-12 June) with nuclear scientists from the UK and India at Oxford. The meeting, facilitated by RCUK India and co-organised by the EPSRC and Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), was held to outline proposals for joint research projects under the Phase III programme of UK-India collaboration in civil nuclear […]
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