17th January 2014 Beirut, Lebanon
One of the great frustrations of diplomacy is that results are hard to quantify. If, for example, a new government is at last formed in Lebanon, we will be hard pressed to say to what extent our encouragement, the hours on the road, in planes and in meetings, contributed. So when a project with direct, […]
23rd December 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
A year ago, I shared elements of my annual review of the year in Lebanon. One year on, we’re still running to stand still. I’ve learnt three rules about diplomacy here. Never think you can understand Lebanon. Never think you can predict Lebanon. Never think you can fix Lebanon. However, breaking at least one of these […]
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29th November 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
French diplomat Jules Cambon saw the dangers of diplomatic openness in 1931, complaining that ‘the activities of the press, and ignorance of a public that insists on being told everything, do not create an atmosphere favourable to prosecution of political designs’. He was right, long before Assange and Snowden, that the media would sweep away […]
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21st November 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
Tomorrow I’ll hand a letter from Prime Minister Cameron to President Sleiman, with formal congratulations on Lebanon’s 70th anniversary. The wonderful people at Rag Mag also asked me to write an open letter to mark the day. This is a tough and precarious assignment, and it will annoy or anger some people. But I’ve had […]
14th November 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
Almost every week in Beirut is a rollercoaster. Every Monday morning we set out what we hope to achieve, and then try not to be buffeted by McMillan’s famous ‘events, dear boy, events’. Here are ten of the things we did last week: Held three Remembrance Day services, in Tripoli, Beirut and Saida. There are […]
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28th October 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
For my generation, Record Breakers was TV gold. We would watch in wonder as world records were broken and Norris McWhirter demonstrated extraordinary knowledge of even the most obscure stats. At the end of every show, Roy Castle would sing the theme song – ‘If you want to be the best, if you want to […]
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9th October 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
A former British Ambassador here was asked at the end of a radio interview what he would like for Christmas. Thinking it typical Lebanese generosity but not wanting to be too greedy, he gave a modest reply. Listening to the broadcast later, he was shocked to hear several envoys asked the same question. The US […]
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4th September 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
I’ve posted before about Naked Diplomacy and why diplomats must ride the digital tiger. Last week I was scheduled to join Foreign Minister Bildt for a Q&A session on innovative diplomacy with Sweden’s ambassadors. I was looking forward to learning from them, as the first Foreign Ministry to put all their envoys on Twitter. But […]
30th August 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
As you may have seen from the media and our digital comms, the UK has changed its travel advice for Lebanon. We are now advising against all but essential travel to Lebanon. For Brits intending to travel to Lebanon, this means that you need to assess whether your trip really is essential. For Brits already […]
31st July 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
Tomorrow is Army Day in Lebanon. The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) will parade, and the Lebanese people reflect on the role the military have played in maintaining stability over the past year, and the sacrifices they have made. I’ll join other Ambassadors in admiring the march past as Lebanese political leaders salute the LAF colours, […]
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