10th June 2014 Oslo, Norway
Denne uken er verdens klimaforhandlere samlet i Bonn for å jobbe videre på veien mot en global klimaavtale i Paris i 2015. Denne gangen er det et sterkt fokus på hva hvert enkelt land kan bidra med i kampen mot klimaendringene. Den britiske regjeringen bidro til å sette nasjonale tiltak på dagsorden med å innføre […]
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11th April 2014 Oslo, Norway
Utenriksminister William Hague lanserte torsdag 10. april Storbritannias årlige rapport om menneskerettigheter og demokrati. Den sammenfatter informasjon fra det britiske diplomatnettverket, andre lands myndigheter, internasjonale organisasjoner og det sivile samfunn for å gi grundige situasjonsbeskrivelser og redegjøre for arbeidet britiske embetsmenn og –kvinner legger ned for å oppnå framgang og resultater. Rapporten fremhever fem temaområder […]
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21st March 2014 Madrid, Spain
Some caricature diplomacy as not being clear, avoiding hard messages, getting a deal at all costs. Worse, some see diplomats as evasive, slippery, cowardly, masters of ambiguity. In my experience the opposite is true. The best diplomats are clear about what they want to achieve, but also understand the objectives of others. They will often […]
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12th March 2014
That’s how Foreign Minister Julie Bishop described this week’s Australia UK Ministerial (AUKMIN) meeting in London, between Foreign and Defence Ministers from the two countries. William Hague responded by describing a “unique relationship that makes Australia one of our most important partners.” Ms Bishop opened the London Stock Exchange on Monday morning, then together with […]
10th February 2014 Madrid, Spain
The Embassy moved into the Torre Espacio, in the North of Madrid, a few years ago. One of the benefits of moving here was to find ourselves as neighbours to La Paz Hospital – one of the best public sector hospitals in Spain. Over the years we have got to know the hospital well. Since […]
16th January 2014 Washington DC, USA
Ever drive onto the Beltway outside Washington DC, or the equivalent in your home town, during rush-hour and wish there were a couple more lanes available? The residents of Nay Pyi Taw, Burma, probably don’t share your concerns. The tiny handful of in-bound motorists has TEN lanes to choose from – as do their out-bound […]
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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28th November 2013 Madrid, Spain
I’m still a newcomer to the world of blogging. So I’m particularly grateful to those who have taken the time to read my early blog posts. And thanks also to those following me on Twitter. But one question that has been put to me a few times is: “Why are you bothering? Wouldn’t your time […]
8th November 2013
Diplomats represent their country’s interests. Traditionally, this leads to barely veiled competition between embassies accredited to third governments: for access, for influence, for commercial contracts. We will occasionally pull together for a common cause – EU embassies often do so as a matter of course – but generally as ‘coalitions of the willing’ rather than […]
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28th June 2013 USA
I’m about to leave Chicago after three fascinating and rewarding years as Consul General promoting the UK across 13 states of the US Midwest – an area bigger than western Europe and with an economy the size of Germany’s. People in Chicago often ask what a Consul General does. So here are five lasting impressions […]
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