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I've just returned from a fascinating two days in Budapest and Warsaw, where I met politicians, business leaders and academics to discuss how we can best work together, within Europe, to tackle the challenges of climate change, the credit crunch, and the Georgia crisis - to name but a few. And I took part in two seminars on the theme of "Building a successful and sustainable Europe".
Poland is, of course, a large and influential EU Member State - one of the "Big Six" - and a natural partner for the UK. We can find common cause on many issues, such as how to best respond to Russia's actions on Georgia. And we have a great deal to discuss on subjects where we differ - for example on the action that is needed to tackle climate change.
In Budapest I was reminded about how passionately Hungarians disagree about their politics, and also had very good discussions of EU issues with Kinga Göncz, the Hungarian Foreign Minister. We released a joint UK-Hungary Human Rights Declaration, emphasising the commitment of both our countries to protecting human rights, and eliminating all forms of discrimination, especially against the Roma, who are a vulnerable and marginalised group in many EU countries. The Budapest Holocaust Memorial Center, with its exhibition "From Deprivation of Rights to Genocide", was a moving example of quite how crucial it is to do everything we can to ensure that discrimination and hatred have no place in the 21st century world. Earlier in the week I had the chance to meet and talk to the remarkable Elie Wiesel at a dinner in London to mark the 20th Anniversary of the Holocaust Educational Trust. Well done to the Trust for 20 years work in keeping the memory alive.
The Foreign Secretary visited Kiev two weeks ago, to show our support for Ukraine in the wake of events in Georgia. Today in Paris the EU and Ukraine agreed to take our relationship a big step forward by agreeing to conclude an Association Agreement. This will help Ukraine to integrate further into the European economy, co-operate on tackling organised crime and trafficking, and improve the prosperity and security of the EU.
Ukraine is a European country, the Summit today explicitly recognised that fact and acknowledged that one day Ukraine might apply for membership. David Miliband set out our approach towards Ukraine in a speech he delivered in Kiev. We believe that the door to EU membership should be open to Ukraine. EU membership will take time and effort, but the goal should be clear.
This success makes it all the more important that Ukraine can handle effectively the domestic political challenges we have seen over the past couple of weeks. I've been heartened by the firm commitment which all sides in Kiev have made to tackling those challenges constitutionally and democratically. Ukraine's democratic record, as well as its impressively free media, have the shown that the country can be a leader and - as the Foreign Secretary said in Kiev - a model to others in the region. They also underpin Ukraine's strong case for membership of the EU and NATO in due course.
The world has rightly been focussing on the crisis in Georgia and I've also blogged about it in the last couple of weeks. But it is important that we don't forget about the other international pressure points - one of which is Bosnia and Herzegovina. This week I met Miroslav Lajcak, the International Community's most senior representative there. Bosnia and Herzegovina was the scene of unspeakable ethnic cleansing in the 1990s. I visited Sarajevo earlier in the year and saw the progress but also the pressures. A wide-ranging agreement with the EU in June was an important step. But there remain significant obstacles to progress and we have to maintain our focus to ensure the country moves forward.
The Balkans remains a sensitive region. Kosovo is now independent and faces the challenge of building a successful multi-ethnic country ; Serbia has elected a moderate government and faces the challenge of moving definitively towards Europe; Karadzic is appearing before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia charged with war crimes, but Mladic remains on the run; and Macedonia remains fragile and in dispute with Greece over its name. All of these are complex situations, and until they're resolved, rebuilding following the shattering consequences of the break up of Yugoslavia will not be complete.
A lot of Brits might still be lucky enough to be holidaying on Cyprus at the moment, and if so they'll be inadvertent witnesses to a historic moment today when the leaders of the two Cypriot communities launch direct negotiations aimed at finding a Cyprus settlement. The progress that has been made this year has been incredibly encouraging. The two leaders have demonstrated their commitment and willingness to work together towards a settlement to reunify Cyprus. What the two leaders are embarking on presents perhaps the best opportunity to solve the Cyprus problem.
I welcome the launch of these talks and encourage the two leaders to seize the opportunity to put an end to this damaging division that cuts right through the heart of Cypriot society. The phrase "once in a generation" is overused in politics but that really is what this is. We'll continue to support their efforts in the coming months, and I look forward to having the opportunity to visit the island soon.
The Olympic medals table makes great viewing. Team GB are third - thanks to the brilliance of so many UK sportsmen and women. I stayed up and watched the womens marathon til after 3am and, while much of the drama was about Paula Radcliffe's run and Liz Yelling's fall, the real story was the FCO's Mara Yamauchi coming in a record 6th, equalling the best performance by a British woman.
But interestingly the table looks great from other countries too.In the US the table has been redefined and the US are top ahead of China by organising it according to total medals won rather than the number of golds. Given this would drop us to fourth, behind Russia, I'm not persuaded! Spare a thought too for the Slovenians who could also be top - if it were organised in medals won per capita.
It's also great to be ahead of France, Germany, Italy and every other European country! Barring a surge by one of these, we may well be number one in Europe.If so, I can genuinely look forward to the next time I meet ministers in Brussels.I will miss the games. Roll on 2012 and London.
I agree with Robert who commented on this blog on 17 August - he's right to question whether punishing "ordinary folk" in Russia through imposing visa restrictions is really an effective and logical response to Russia's deplorable actions in the last 2 weeks. The UK's visa policy is always to focus this kind of action on the people responsible rather than the general public - that's why we targetted tightened visa restrictions at Russian officials only in our disagreement over Litvinenko, and why we did not change our visa policy towards ordinary Russians then and why we won't change it now. But we do need to send clear messages to Russia about their behaviour. As the Foreign Secretary said today in his article in the Times we can't disengage. The right response is hard-headed engagement to make sure that Russia understands the consequences of its actions. As Russia has breached international norms, the international community needs to respond as one. The UK has been intensively engaged in international negotiations, including through the EU, G7 OSCE, NATO and the UN, to ensure an appropriate, unified response.
I regret to say that even now the situation on the ground throughout Georgia remains fluid and fragile. Although the ceasefire is largely continuing to hold there are some reports of continuing violence and this must stop immediately. And there are still Russian forces well beyond Abkhazia and South Ossetia. We welcomed the Russian statement that withdrawal was beginning but there is no sign whatsoever of this happening on the ground. We now we need to see evidence on the ground that Russia is living up to the commitments it has made.
The Foreign Secretary has been in Brussels again today, this time for a meeting of the Foreign Ministers of NATO countries. Some of you will have seen that he has been making these points strongly. The UK continues to offer Georgia both practical and political support in the short term - for example through sending immediate humanitarian aid - and longer term as they continue with their reform processes. The Foreign Secretary is right now flying to Tbilisi to discuss with partners there what we can do to help, and to see the situation on the ground for himself.
I'm in Brussels discussing the situation in Georgia. The 27 countries of the European Union were united in their grave concern about the recent developments. Military actions are not a solution. The war has led to heavy loss of life and inflicted widespread humanitarian suffering.
Foreign Ministers welcomed the EU mediation efforts and urged the parties to the conflict to respect the commitments they had made, starting with an effective ceasefire. They reaffirmed that the European Union will work to support the observation mission on the ground, which is led by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and provide essential aid for the humanitarian situation.
The crucial thing now is to make sure that the ceasefire holds and the humanitarian suffering is addressed. Then we need meaningful talks about the future and strong international supervision of the process.
News earlier this week about the number of UK holiday makers in Spain who are arrested each year. I was on holiday in Costa Brava, an area of Spain that is remarkably British. In fact there seem to be more Irish bars than there are in Ireland. And I have to admit I didn't see any trouble at all.
But the figures are worrying. British tourists abroad sometimes forget that if they break the laws of the country they are in they will face justice in the same way that a foreign tourist visiting the UK is subject to our laws when they are here. Meg Munn is the Minister responsible for Consular Services in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. On Tuesday, she commented on the report and reminded Brits of some of the simple steps they can take to avoid problems when travelling overseas. You can read these and get travel advice on our website .
You may have heard last week that the Serbian government has decided to reinstate its ambassadors who were withdrawn from the EU countries that recognised Kosovo's independence. This is good news. It is only by having regular contact that differences can be reconciled and relationships strengthened. This decision will allow us all to work together to achieve our shared objective - Serbia in the EU.
The new Serbian government has shown in the last week that facing up to the past is the only way for Serbia, and the region, to secure lasting peace and prosperity (see my blog on Karadzic arrest). I am pleased that the new government is seizing opportunities to move Serbia closer to the EU.
Of course there is still more for Serbia to do to fulfil its EU ambition and I hope they continue to progress with the same pragmatism and drive they have shown this week.
For those of you who have been following my visit to the US I thought I should post a quick blog on a second speech I gave. I spoke at the Brookings Institution this morning in Washington. The topic was about the evolution of the transatlantic agenda, and the vital role of public diplomacy in it. Click here to read it . Let me know what you think.
There was a good discussion about climate change, Russia, the media and cooperation between democracies. I enjoyed it and it was great of Brookings to host it. Its been a busy 24 hours for them with British politicians because my friend and UK Defence Secretary Des Browne spoke there yesterday. Click here to read his speech
I officially launched the public diplomacy publication "Engagement" on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. last night. I spoke about why public diplomacy needs to change (easy: because the world is changing), and how we do that (harder: but it means engaging with and listening to the right people, in the right way, at the right time - as we develop policies and not just when we deliver them). Read my full speech online.
Congressman Payne, a member of the congressional Foreign Affairs Committee, kindly also spoke at the launch of the book and gave a fascinating snapshot of the shifts in public diplomacy trends in the USA and around the world since the phrase was coined in the 1960s. And he underlined the inclusivity of policy making in a globalised world that the book promotes. Let me know what you think - read it online.
I thought I should post a second blog on my visit to Utah. I had lunch with the Mayor of Salt Lake City and the President of the Senate as well as other senior politicians. It was fascinating. I was in a minority in believing that climate change was indeed man made. Some of the politicians cited the various reports which claim that climate change is not new, and is simply the earth's natural cycle which repeats itself over time. These reports seem to have a real influence on them.
There were also concerns because Utah is more than 80% reliant on coal for its fuel. I explained that fossil fuel has an important future as long as we invest to make coal cleaner.
So in Britain the conversation has largely moved beyond the question of "is this a man made problem?" to trying to find the answer to "what do we do to repair our environment?"
But despite the strong leadership of Governor Huntsman some senior people in Utah are still sincerely and passionately debating the first question. While it is easy to criticise these views, it is more important to try to convince them of ours. Happy to hear your ideas on how it can be done.
I was in Los Angeles yesterday and I'm in Salt Lake City today as part of a visit to the USA to launch a book on public diplomacy. Academics, consultants, communicators, diplomats and myself have contributed essays about how governments need to revisit the idea of public diplomacy given the new context we're doing foreign policy in: the challenges of globalisation; the opportunities of new media and IT; and the power of publics and not just governments to deliver change. You can read the book online.
With the launch of the UK's consultation on renewable energy and France's aim to get a Europe wide agreement on renewables during the French Presidency of the EU (in the next 25 weeks), I'm also talking about climate change and low carbon in the west. In the spirit of a new kind of public diplomacy, I talked to policy influencers rather than policy makers in California - like the Climate Registry which is recording and tracking businesses' emissions before federal rules in the US require it - so they're making a difference now. And in Utah I met Governor Huntsman to compare the challenges faced by a state 98% dependent on fossil fuels, and to listen to their plans on how to reshape Utah's economy.
I was very upset to hear the reports of violence at the Pride parades in Prague, Riga and Sofia in the last few weeks, and also very disappointed that pressure from various sources meant the Pride parade in Moldova scheduled for May did not take place. This was in marked contrast to the peaceful Pride held for the first time ever in Delhi on Sunday 29 June.
The FCO is committed to promoting equality and ending the discrimination of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people around the world and we've developed a program of skills and information for Embassies and diplomats to help achieve this. We look at where the UK can have a positive effect in providing information on the official British policy on gay rights and instructions in how to provide added value to equality and non-discrimination work. It covers a wide range of issues, from decriminalisation, sexual health, reproductive rights and health education to bilateral work with other countries.
Although we focus work in countries where homosexuality is criminalised, we also monitor the situation across Europe closely. The British Embassies in Warsaw and Riga, for example, were active in helping support and celebrate the diversity, equality and acceptance for all that the Pride events promote. We are also very active in international organisations in promoting our goal of equality for LGBT people in the enjoyment of human rights.
I'm finally getting the chance to blog about my visit to Edinburgh last week. I attended one of our annual receptions for Chevening scholars, which are held all over the UK.
I met a fascinating group of scholars from a wide range of countries studying at several different Scottish universities, plus one studying at Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland. The Chevening scholarship scheme is important for the FCO and for the UK because it brings to the UK the people who have been identified by our embassies and other overseas posts as the future opinion formers and leaders of their countries.
All the people I met in Edinburgh showed that they have the spark to be the 'changemakers' and to lead their countries into the future. So I send them all my best wishes: for their dissertations in the next few months; and in the longer term for a continuing relationship with the UK.
We will be changing funding in future years to redirect FCO resources into climate change efforts, so competition for places will be even keener, but we do want to do more to keep in touch with alumni through the new Chevening website (www.chevening.com).
I spent yesterday in Berlin - the day after the German team was beaten by Spain in the Euro 2008 final, and the day before the start of the French Presidency of the EU.
I passed the buses taking the team to meet Mrs. Merkel and hundreds of thousands of supporters. Everyone I met was proud of the German team's performance, though they all agreed that the better side had won. It makes you realise what you miss when none of the home teams qualify for these major football finals, but hopefully it will be different for the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa.
As well as meetings, my friend the German Europe Minister Günter Gloser and I both spoke at a conference called Global Europe: An Anglo-German Agenda . All our relationships in Europe are important, but I left Berlin even more convinced that a continuing strong relationship with Germany is vital if we want to make progress through Europe on things that matter to people in the UK.
Incidentally for those of you who follow these things I am now £10 worse off and the local bookie is £10 better off as a result of Spain beating Italy in a penalty shoot out last week. I've no idea who will win Euro 2008 now.
Germany and their remarkably reliable team with a couple of exceptional goal scorers; Spain and their high tempo game (although this wasn't much in evidence against Italy); Russia and their young team who seem to get better and more confident with each game; Turkey and their never give up style which has seen them as the competition's comeback kings.
I'll leave the predictions to others.
With just a week to go until the French Presidency of the EU kicks off (and the Slovenians get a well deserved summer break) I'm off to Paris this afternoon to see French Europe Minister Jean Pierre Jouyet. We've spoken by phone over the last couple of weeks, as I have to a number of my European counterparts following the Irish No vote, but it's good to see him face to face, and reinforce the UK's support for the French government's work on climate change, migration policy and European defence.
I left for Paris straight after Oral Questions from MPs to Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers in the House of Commons earlier today. After a debate on the European Council last week, and the PM's statement on it yesterday, it was good to focus on some questions about what the UK and EU are doing to actually help people - tackling human trafficking for example. See what was said in Oral Questions, and other debates in the House of Commons.
This morning I spoke at the Central Council for Physical Recreation (CCPR) Sport Summit at the Oval Cricket Ground, on the issue of Sport and the Lisbon Treaty. We had an interesting conversation about the role Europe should play on Sport. The participants welcomed that the treaty will not allow the EU to harmonise sporting regulations, meaning that sport is one of the many areas of the Treaty where EU input is strictly limited to complementing or adding action taken at EU level.
We also enjoyed an interesting discussion on the wider role of sport in Europe. We agreed that sport plays an important framework in our society. It provides an inspiration for young people, allowing them to develop confidence and learn new skills, become fitter and stronger and have their talent recognised and developed. With over 700,000 sports clubs and associations within the European Union, it is easy to see why the British Olympic Association has described sport as the biggest social movement in Europe.
How do you see Europe's role in promoting sporting development? I'd be interested in your views on this, either here or through my blog on the Sports Summit on the Guardian website. Finally, you will be aware that Euro 2008 is underway, providing another example of the role of sport in bringing communities and nations together. I was able to catch the Holland v Italy match on Monday night - the first game I have seen in the tournament. The Dutch won 3-0 in a convincing victory. But while the Dutch may be celebrating I am not. I wandered into the bookies at home on Saturday to put £10 on who I thought would win. You guessed it - I backed Italy at 7-1. What price an Italian victory now? I should stick to politics.
Yesterday I was in Rome to meet the Ministers in the new Italian government. I also took part in a general audience with the Pope at the Vatican. Wet weather meant that thousands of pilgrims were invited into the Vatican to listen to the Pontiff.
The atmosphere was incredible and unexpected. I had expected a calm and reverential event and was amazed by how wrong I was. It was a wonderfully spiritual occasion but it was more than that. It was a celebration of Faith. It was loud and boisterous. As Pope Benedict named each group of pilgrims they cheered, sang or applauded. The noisiest group were the Polish groups. Some had brought instruments, many waved flags.
I had the once in a lifetime opportunity to meet the Pope at the end of the Audience and spoke to him about international debt and world poverty. It was a wonderful opportunity which I will never forget.
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