Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs

A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy

20th May 2013 Beirut, Lebanon

Tom Fletcher

by Tom Fletcher

Former British Ambassador to Lebanon

The Brits are coming… but please stay in touch

It is good to see the waves of British visitors in Lebanon this Summer. British Airways are laying on extra flights, the Hay Festival has just been, and we have several brands – Jack Jones, Marks and Spencer, Virgin Radio, Ted Baker – opening in the coming weeks. This is exactly the relationship we want […]

Read more on The Brits are coming… but please stay in touch | Reply (8)

17th May 2013 Dushanbe, Tajikistan

An Unforgettable Central Asian Experience

The following is a post by Alice Harrison, who recently visited Tajikistan with regional Defence Attaché David Harrison May appeared to be a wonderful month to visit the Pamirs for those interested in flowers. Every village passed had banks of shaggy, bearded irises planted in its gardens and along the road.  The first of the eremus were […]

Read more on An Unforgettable Central Asian Experience | Reply (1)

17th May 2013

Avatar photo

by Greg Dorey

Diplomat

Africa in London

This has been a fortnight of focus on Africa in London. It started with the Somalia Conference on 7 May in Lancaster House, following up the Somalia Conference of a year ago. The difference was that this time the Government of Somalia co-chaired the event and the agenda concentrated on its priorities. Feedback from those […]

Read more on Africa in London | Reply (2)

17th May 2013 Bangalore, India

Sunil Kumar M

by Sunil Kumar

Senior Science & Innovation Adviser

Sky’s the limit in Indo-UK aerospace technology

A couple of weeks ago I was involved in an event bringing together aerospace researchers and companies from the UK and India together for three days to discuss opportunities for working together. We asked Venkatesh Janakiram, Senior Trade & Investment Adviser in Aerospace at the British Deputy High Commission, to write about the event… One hundred […]

Read more on Sky’s the limit in Indo-UK aerospace technology | Reply (8)

15th May 2013

Avatar photo

by Nigel Baker

Ambassador to the Holy See (2011-2016)

Together against Religious Persecution

What is it that leading British Sikhs, Jews, Hindus, Roman Catholics, Copts, Buddhists, Presbyterians and Muslims have in common? Too often, we hear about the differences between faiths. But this week we saw an extraordinary coming together for a great cause. On 14 May, Foreign Office Minister Alastair Burt received in person an open letter […]

Read more on Together against Religious Persecution | Reply

14th May 2013

Avatar photo

by Sarah Dickson

Ambassador to Guatemala (June 2012 - June 2015)

Promoting London’s Olympic legacy in Guatemala’s second city, Xela

With the Ambassador in London at the FCO’s Leadership Conference, this is a guest blog from Hector Marroquin, our Prosperity Officer. Last weekend we went to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala’s second city, also known as Xela, to take part in their Cultural and Business Festival, “XelajuEs… Diferente!” This was the second year the Municipality of Xela had […]

Read more on Promoting London’s Olympic legacy in Guatemala’s second city, Xela | Reply

14th May 2013

Avatar photo

by Peter Millett

Ambassador to Libya, Tripoli

Listening: The Secret of Leadership

Much has been written about what makes a good leader. Books have analysed the nature of leadership. Business schools charge high fees to teach leadership skills to up-and-coming middle managers. And leadership gurus  have made fortunes using clever sounding buzz-words such as “demonstrate integrity”, “build trust” and “inspire innovation”. This week I will be at […]

Read more on Listening: The Secret of Leadership | Reply (2)

14th May 2013 London, UK

Avatar photo

by David Lidington

Minister for Europe, London

A startling statistic

A startling statistic – over half the businesses that get help from UK Trade & Investment go on to win additional sales of over £600,000 within two years. The UK’s trade performance is often discussed in the abstract, or at the macroeconomic level. People look at the effect on UK GDP or the balance of […]

Read more on A startling statistic | Reply