Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs

A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy

13th February 2012 Washington DC, USA

Hetty Crist

by Hetty Crist

Deputy Press Secretary

A GREAT Night for British Music

If the first two months are any indication, 2012 is shaping up to be a truly GREAT year for the UK. At the Golden Globes back in January, British shows and performers brought home three awards, including Best Miniseries for the smash hit Downton Abbey. Last night’s GRAMMYs kept the momentum rolling. The one and […]

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13th February 2012 Washington DC, USA

Rosalind Campion portrait

by Rosalind Campion

Counsellor for Global Issues

Two Wheels Good

It’s a steep hill from our apartment in Georgetown to the Embassy in DC.  In the mornings, I’ve tried to reconcile myself to this by reminding myself how healthy it is to start the day with a walk up a hill.  I’ve had some success.  But the journey home was less enjoyable for the first few […]

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13th February 2012

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by Peter Millett

Ambassador to Libya, Tripoli

The Responsibility of the Press

The backbone of any democracy is an independent, professional and responsible media. Their role is to inform, criticise and stimulate debate. So how can the media be encouraged to step up to this vital role? One initiative launched a few years ago by the UK’s Thomson Foundation – and funded by the British Embassy – is […]

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13th February 2012 Bucharest, Romania

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by Raluca Bragarea

Head of Communications, Bucharest

The StartEvo Project or “You make your own luck”

Guest blog: I am Iulian Craciun and I am a disabled person. So what? I learned that in order to be successful in life you need to build your own luck. Not to wait from others. I’ve learned that you are the only person that can really make a difference in shaping your destiny. “You […]

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13th February 2012 Warsaw, Poland

Martin Oxley, Head, UKTI Poland

by Martin Oxley

Director of UKTI Warsaw

A Big Wow! All on board for the British Olympics in Bialystok – Fall in Love with London 2012!

At some ridiculously low temperature I jumped in the car on Saturday and drove to Białystok to participate in The Polish Olympic Sporting Awards. A great evening with some brilliant people from the world of sport in Poland – an excellent starting point for the visit of the British Olympic Travelling Exhibition to Poland, a […]

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13th February 2012 Dublin, Ireland

Robin Barnett

by Robin Barnett

Former Ambassador to Ireland, Dublin

A Scottish evening with Wojtek the Bear.

One of the UK’s great strengths is its diversity. That includes some great cultural traditions. One of the best of those is Burns night. To celebrate this, we held an event at the Embassy. Very few of our events feature a pipe band and a sword dance, performed by the outstanding pipe band from Częstochowa. […]

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10th February 2012 New York, USA

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by Danny Lopez

British Consul-General, New York

Empire State of Mind

2012 is a special year for the UK, and we have much to look forward to in the months ahead with the London 2012 Games and the Diamond Jubilee. On a cold January day in New York, while talking to some colleagues about celebrating the countdown to the Olympics, somebody mentioned the “Empire State Building Run […]

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10th February 2012

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by Leigh Turner

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

EU integration and Ukraine: next steps?

What has to happen in order for Ukraine to start benefiting from the Association Agreement with the EU, and the associated Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA), conclusion of negotiations on which were announced at the EU/Ukraine Summit on 19 December? It is important to understand that the Association Agreement and the DCFTA will […]

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10th February 2012

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by Martin Harris

British Ambassador to Ukraine

Credit where credit is due

Romania gets a good report on the battle against corruption in the latest assessment by the Commission. Deservedly so. The last few months have seen important steps forward. Verdicts have been reached in high-level corruption cases. The Civil Code is in force and working. New rules have been put in place for appointing judges to […]

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