8th June 2014 Brasilia, Brazil
Rape and sexual violence has been a part of war as far back as we know. It occurs both as a consequence of conflict but is also used as a weapon in itself. It is civilians (all sexes and ages) who suffer the most . We do not think this is inevitable. It’s time to […]
7th March 2014 Beirut, Lebanon
In the 21st century we get angry about many small things: traffic jams, power cuts or a failed internet connection. We get plenty of opportunities for all three in Lebanon. But last Friday I joined an event about an issue worth getting really furious about. The Beirut Bar Association launched a Human Rights Institute booklet […]
4th March 2014 Washington DC, USA
On Tuesday evening at Georgetown University, the UK’s Foreign Secretary William Hague, received an award from his friend and former US counterpart, Hillary Clinton. The award recognizes his leadership in steering the energies of the British government into the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, an international project to end the use of rape and sexual assault […]
3rd March 2014
Late last year, the UN General Assembly decided to make March 3 World Wildlife Day. On this day in 1973, the UN adopted the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, affirming the intrinsic value of wildlife and its various contributions including ecological, genetic, social, economic, scientific, educational, cultural, recreational […]
14th February 2014 Toronto, Canada
The UK’s Foreign Secretary William Hague and Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird met in London ahead of the London Conference on the Illegal Wildlife Trade, and refreshed the UK-Canada Joint Declaration. We reported on the original Joint Declaration and Joint Innovation Statement in previous posts, and have been working hard over the past couple […]
13th January 2014 Paris, France
We’ve just had in Paris a meeting of a group of countries who are trying to help move forward the Syrian problem which William Hague, our Foreign Minister, was here to attend.
Read more on The Friends of Syria core group meeting in Paris | Reply
9th September 2013
Within minutes of Tony Abbott winning the election on Saturday night, British PM David Cameron called him to offer warm congratulations. He talked about the very strong ties between Britain and Australia. PM Abbott, born in London to Australian parents who were living there temporarily, and a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford, agreed on the importance […]
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3rd September 2013
One of the highlights of the United Nations General Assembly in September will be an event hosted by Foreign Secretary William Hague and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to launch a high level political and ambitious declaration on the need to keep up the international momentum on tackling sexual violence in conflict. This event follows […]
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2nd July 2013
Last week Shadow Foreign Secretary, the Rt Hon Douglas Alexander MP, visited Australia as a guest of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The Australian government arranged the programme for him, but we gave him an in-depth briefing at the High Commission, and I hosted a dinner to discuss foreign policy with MPs, officials […]
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12th April 2013
This week, Foreign Ministers from the Group of Eight (UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Canada, US and Russia) met in London. They looked at a wide range of issues, including the situation in the Middle East (specifically Syria and Iran), Africa, DPRK and climate change. Two particular issues they addressed illustrate that diplomacy has a […]