25th April 2023 Belgrade, Serbia
On 24 February 2022 the world watched with horror and disbelief as Vladimir Putin had launched his illegal, unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. Many people including in Serbia did not to believe or want to believe that Moscow would take such a reckless step, particularly against another Slavic nation with many historic, family and cultural ties […]
20th February 2023 Belgrade, Serbia
On 24 February 2022 the world watched with horror and disbelief as Vladimir Putin launched a full scale, illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. One year on that horror and disbelief is mixed with anger and sorrow. At the senseless loss of tens of thousands of lives – Ukrainian and Russian. At the callous disregard […]
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17th November 2022 Belgrade, Serbia
Citizens look to their national leaders to govern responsibly and in the interests of their country. They hope that leaders will be blessed with wisdom and good judgement, and that they will exercise their authority responsibility. In return, leaders earn the trust of the people they govern. In democratic societies people are free to make […]
4th July 2022 Belgrade, Serbia
The numbers are growing. Some 13 million people have fled their homes in Ukraine since the Russian invasion. More than 5 million are still outside the country. Over 6 million people remain displaced within Ukraine. These are ordinary people, children and adults, citizens of a European country that is a close friend and ally of both Serbia and the UK. A few […]
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6th June 2022 Belgrade, Serbia
What is happening in Ukraine can be no less shocking to people in Serbia than to people in Canada, Norway, Poland, the UK – or anywhere else including Russia, when and where the truth is known. Deliberate disinformation has been rife and multifaceted – from mundane lies (no intention of invading Ukraine) to fantasy fiction […]
24th May 2022 Belgrade, Serbia
I am a diplomat not a historian. But as a diplomat you cannot escape or ignore history – and nor should you want to. It is desperately sad to see a country with a rich heritage being trapped by a re-imagined history rather than addressing present needs and future opportunities. Chatting over dinner about 15 […]
30th April 2022 Belgrade, Serbia
Disinformation has become one of the defining words of our age. It is not a new phenomenon. But its present scale is unprecedented, helped by round the clock broadcasting and social media. There is a shorter word for it: lies. But ‘disinformation’ perhaps better conveys the sense of deliberate corrupting of the media environment with […]
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29th March 2022 Geneva, Switzerland
It’s just over a month now since the Russian armed forces launched their unprovoked, premeditated and unjustified invasion of Ukraine. Russia’s attack is an assault on Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and an egregious violation of the United Nations Charter. Its use of indiscriminate force against innocent civilians is barbaric, and amounts to war crimes. […]
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28th March 2022 Belgrade, Serbia
People around the world have watched in horror and disbelief as Russian military hardware wreaks death and destruction across Ukraine. Moscow’s decision to launch a brutal and bloody war is illegal and unjustified. It is unsurprising that the world has moved quickly to condemn the invasion, and actions such as targeting of maternity hospitals and […]
23rd March 2022
Last week, I had the honour of attending the 66th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at the United Nations, New York. CSW is the biggest annual forum for defending and promoting women and girls’ rights around the world. The UK was well represented at CSW, with a delegation of inspirational women including the […]
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