Public diplomacy

Weaponized information campaigns emanating from Russia, China, Iran and non-state actors such as ISIS continue to threaten the United States and its allies at the close of the first decade of the 21st century. A new briefing paper published by the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA) examines the institutional constraints behind the U.S.'s limited counter-strategies. Even though the U.S. State Department's Global Engagement Center (GEC) was given the authority to tackle state-sponsored disinformation in 2016, efforts still remain scattered throughout U.S. government agencies. International cooperation is needed, the paper says, to make up for the lack of an integrated U.S. strategy. New policies, coordination plans and collaboration with the private sector will be needed to bolster U.S. efforts against disinformation campaigns. "The lack of a strategy and an effective interagency coordina..

Skip to content UK in North Macedonia Part of #BeyondPlastic UK in North Macedonia 18th November 2019 Skopje, North Macedonia Climate change and plastic free environments – we are all responsible to #ActGreen Introduction by Her Majesty’s Ambassador Rachel Galloway, British Embassy Skopje: Climate change presents an existential risk to global prosperity & security, and I am proud that the UK are leading in the fight to protect our environment. This year, we have become one of the first major economies to commit to ending our contribution to climate change altogether by reducing our emissions to net zero by 2050. This is consistent with the science of what is needed globally to avoid dangerous climate change. The next Climate Change Conference (COP25) will take place in December and we will post a series of environmental related blogs by some guest bloggers to share information & ideas. Next year, the UK has successfully bid to co-host with Italy the 2020 Climate Change Conference (COP..

The Easter Sunday terror attacks dealt a blow to the Sri Lankan tourism industry, the third largest source of foreign exchange in Sri Lanka....

Albanian popular support for fascism and Nazism was widespread. Nazi Germany exploited the Greater Albania nationalist ideology to gain popular support for the Nazi German occupation of Kosovo.

The use of social media in politics becomes a major player in building consensus. The new technologies have deeply affected the working methods of diplomats and their communication style, says H.E. Stefano Baldi, Ambassador of Italy in Bulgaria, in an interview to Europost.

Turkey and China will fight the spread of propaganda through the media together, Turkey's Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun said on Wednesday.

Skip to content Leigh Turner Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna Part of UK in Austria 4th November 2019 Vienna, Austria British education: major visa reform for post-study visas I commend a recent British Council blog, written by Education Director Maddalaine Ansell. Ms Ansell writes about the major reform to post-work study visas for international students which the UK Government has announced will enter into force from 2020. “From next year,” she writes, “students graduating from British higher education institutions with at least an undergraduate degree can apply to stay for two years to work or seek work. If they find skilled work, they can switch into the skilled workers immigration route, which can lead to permanent settlement in the UK.” The change will not directly affect Austrian students, who can already study in the UK for courses starting in the 2020-21 academic year on the same basis ..

"The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor in Social Media: A Critical Discourse Analysis" analyzes the strong role of Twitter in shaping Pakistan's positive national narrative of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the portion of China's Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) that cuts directly through Pakistan, border-to-border. The authors note that Pakistan's population of 200+ million people is one of the world's largest and fastest-growing social media audiences. “In nearly 70 years of friendship and close cooperation between China and Pakistan, the CPEC has emerged as a climax bringing both countries closer through greater Chinese investment under the BRI," write Ahmed, Rojratanakiat and Taekasem. "Twitter..

Foreign interference in elections: we’ve heard the uproar, read the investigations, and fretted about it at the polling booth. But what lessons have we learned since 2016, and just how worried should we really be? The British Foreign Policy Group presents a lively and provocative panel discussion of experts, exploring the nature and role that foreign interference could play in the forthcoming British and American national elections. Looking at the situation here in Britain, and across the pond to the 2020 US Presidential elections, our panelists will debate how much of a risk foreign interference presents, and discuss how to implement policies to tackle this defining problem in modern democracies. Panelists: Peter Pomerantsev, Senior Fellow, London School of Economics and Political Science and auth..

Skip to content Leigh Turner Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna Part of UK in Austria 31st October 2019 Vienna, Austria The Government Art Collection in Vienna The Duke of Wellington stares across the room towards a distant Queen Victoria, while Emperor Franz Josef – sash, ‘tache and all – observes impassively. Not the plot of a historical novel, but the paintings in the dining room at the ambassador’s residence in Vienna. Works from the Government Art Collection (GAC) are displayed in UK Government buildings in nearly every capital city, making it the most dispersed collection of British art in the world. The Collection promotes British art and plays a key role in British cultural diplomacy, delivering an expression of Britain’s culture and its values. Nowhere is this more relevant than in Vienna, a city where appreciation of art and culture flows through everyday life; and where our continuing ..