Shoulder to Shoulder

UK-US defence, development & foreign policy blog

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12th April 2013 Washington DC, USA

Co-ordinating care for wounded vets

I accompanied the Right Honourable Mark Francois, Minister of Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans (Min DPWV) for four days in Washington last week during his visit to discuss all aspects of the Service Personnel, Veterans and Families Taskforce (SPV+F). We were looked after tremendously by our American counterparts, with the highest levels of access in […]

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3rd April 2013 Washington DC, USA

Africa, Texas

It is a warm morning, and I’m standing in a crowd of Africans. Many of the women are in brightly coloured dresses; the men sport a variety of styles of headdress. A minibus pulls up and we squeeze more of us on-board than I thought possible. As we’re about to shut the door someone leans […]

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2nd April 2013 Washington DC, USA

by Andrew Preston

Development Counsellor

Learning from the UK: A confession from a development professional

I don’t give as much money to good causes as I should. For someone who works in international development and who feels strongly that we need a joint, all-out effort to end poverty, that’s a pretty stark admission. Given my own failings, I can only say hats off to the UK Government for maintaining its […]

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22nd March 2013 Washington DC, USA

by Major General Buster Howes

Defence Attaché

Victoria Cross awarded to a courageous hero

A British soldier who died in southern Afghanistan last year as he protected his platoon from a grenade blast is to be awarded the Victoria Cross. The UK’s top gallantry medal will go to Lance Corporal James Ashworth, 23, of Corby, Northamptonshire, who was serving with 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards. The Victoria Cross is the […]

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12th March 2013 Washington DC, USA

by Major General Buster Howes

Defence Attaché

Big Battlefield Bike Ride 2013: Training Commences

The following is a guest blog by Col Fred Hargreaves from the British Embassy. Col Hargreaves, in his first blog, talks about the UK/US Service Personnel, Veterans and Families Taskforce and the latest venture organised by the Embassy of sending a joint UK/US team to cycle from Paris to London in the late Spring. When […]

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About Shoulder to Shoulder

Shoulder to Shoulder is a blog about the foreign policy, security, defense, and international development work of the British Embassy in Washington and our consulates throughout the United States. Our…

Shoulder to Shoulder is a blog about the foreign policy, security, defense, and international development work of the British Embassy in Washington and our consulates throughout the United States. Our bloggers come from various backgrounds.

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