G20 India 2023: Insights from FPC Fellows & Friends
Insights from FPC Fellows & Friends on the upcoming G20 Leaders' Summit and thematic priorities.
UK foreign policy is going through a period of extreme volatility, with the country’s international position more uncertain than at any time since the end of the Second World War. There is a national debate over Britain’s global role, looking at whether and how the UK can move from a period of intense introspection to reengage constructively on the world stage and within regional and international institutions. This programme will examine the challenges posed by both ‘Brexit’ and an increasingly volatile world, looking at what they mean for the UK now and for its future. Central to the FPC’s work in this area will be exploring the extent to which the UK can be a ‘force for good’ in the world and how its relations to international institutions and other nations develop.
Insights from FPC Fellows & Friends on the upcoming G20 Leaders' Summit and thematic priorities.
A ‘Force for Good’?: Examining UK engagement in Fragile and Conflict Affected Countries
Examining the importance of open societies to the UK’s ‘force for good’ ambitions.
This report focuses on two unusual but strategically important British communities overseas.
Part of the ‘Finding Britain’s role in a changing world’ publication series.
Part of the ‘Finding Britain’s role in a changing world’ publication series.
Part of the ‘Finding Britain’s role in a changing world’ publication series.
Part of the 'Finding Britain's role in a changing world' publication series.
Building a values-based foreign policy
Over the past decade, international trade has become an increasingly contentious political issue in both the United Kingdom and the United States. Departing from a postwar consensus in favour of…
It is often said that the Americans and the British are two people divided by a common language. If that language is democracy, then developments in 2024 could lead to…
This year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28), held from 30 November to 12 December 2023 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), got off to a rocky start. Hosting the…
The Inter-Parliamentary Union assembly Bahrain: what the revocation of observers’ visas really signifies On 8 March, the government of Bahrain revoked the visas of two individuals from Human Rights Watch…
Last year’s massive escalation of the Russian invasion into Ukraine has put global and regional organisations to the test. State capacities for foreign defence and development in European Union (EU)…
With a change at the top of British politics, will the UK’s foreign policy be a continuation of the Johnson era or are we turning the page towards a new…
The foreign policy of the United Kingdom (UK) is undergoing a period of evolution and adaptation, responding to: a changing geopolitical context; a different set of relationships with allies and…
In the aftermath of the Cold War, the future trajectory of the world seemed assured. The political philosopher Francis Fukuyama even wrote an obituary of the past, proclaiming the end…
UK involvement in peacebuilding and peacemaking has taken steps forwards and backwards over the last ten years. We have a better understanding of conflict, its drivers and relationship to inclusive…
The challenges The role of multilateral institutions, pre-eminently the United Nations (UN), in fragile states is multifaceted. They invariably maintain primary responsibility for the delivery of humanitarian aid – the…
The changing international landscape for humanitarian and development assistance in FCACs The UK’s overseas aid in coming years will be conditioned by the UK’s national interest as understood through a…
When we talk about conflict sensitivity, invariably the first words we hear are ‘Do no harm’. In practice, we know that this is an impossible ask. All interventions, however benign…
‘Global Britain’ encapsulates broad principles and aspirations for the UK’s continued influence in the world. The Prime Minister, in his preface to Global Britain in a Competitive Age (often referred…
Climate change and pitfalls of low carbon development The recently concluded discussions of the COP26 climate summit highlighted that progress towards meeting the 1.5C target could not come any sooner.…
The year 2020 marked 20 years of the landmark United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325(UNSCR1325) on women, peace and security.[1] Since then nine additional Resolutions have been adopted to reinforce…
This collection of essays has looked at the ways in which the UK’s foreign policy engagement in FCACs is adapting to changes in the global foreign policy environment, the evolving…
Open societies around the world and the international system that supports them are under growing threat. This publication provides detailed analysis and practical ideas for how the UK can meet…
This publication comes at a moment of transition for UK foreign policy as Britain seeks to put into practice the Government’s Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy…
If all politics is local, then it is also personal. I did not become a politician because of some abstract theory. I became a politician because I was free to…
‘Soft power’ is defined by the Cambridge English Dictionary as ‘the use of a country's cultural and economic influence to persuade other countries to do something, rather than the use…
What differentiates an ‘open society’ What are open societies? The famed camel comes to mind: open societies may be hard to define but they are easy to recognise. Given the…
Why does it matter It matters who we elect to lead our communities and our country. Their values and priorities shape our future. If all of those leaders have the…
The rationale for elevating open societies and human rights as a major British foreign and development policy priority is clear. There have been 15 consecutive years of declining civic space…
Since the Financial Crisis in 2007-8, democratisation has stalled and even gone into reverse. Authoritarianism is proliferating worldwide, including even at the heart of Europe. According to Freedom House, a…
It is not by accident that the most common metaphor in anti-corruption is the contention that ‘sunlight is the best of disinfectants’. It was popularised by soon-to-be US Supreme Court…
The rule of law and the Integrated Review The rule of law’s place in the Integrated Review is something of a walk on part.[1] Alongside a commitment to universal…
The UK Government’s stated commitment to open societies is unequivocal. In the wide-ranging Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy published in March this year, open societies are…
The challenge of defending and advancing democracy around the world is intertwined with economic challenges facing the UK and other societies: “Open and democratic societies like the UK must…
The autocrats playbook “The playbook of “wannabe” dictators seems to have been shared widely among leaders in (former) democracies. First, seek to restrict and control the media while curbing academia…
For digital democracy to succeed across the world, we need an open reformation in our democratic systems, practices and mindset. Far from radical, this is essential if we are to…
Promoting and upholding electoral integrity around the world is an important way to support open societies internationally. It is an area where the UK can play a significant role in…
London, United Kingdom, late 2020: six select committees of the House of Commons call a citizens’ assembly to understand public preferences on how the UK should reduce greenhouse gas emissions…
This publication has set out in detail the scale of the global threat to open societies and put forward practical ideas for how the UK can play an active role…
The publication of the Integrated Review (IR) in March 2021 marked the most detailed account yet of the Government’s vision of a post-Brexit ‘Global’ Britain. A vision of foreign policy…
While Russia is cracking down on investigative journalists exposing corruption amongst its political elites, the UK’s political elites are failing to do enough to crack down on corruption exposed by…
This week Unsafe for Scrutiny’s Project Director, Susan Coughtrie, spoke with Sarah Clarke, Head of Europe and Central Asia at ARTICLE 19, Flutura Kusari, Legal Advisor at the European Centre…
This week Unsafe for Scrutiny’s Project Director, Susan Coughtrie, spoke with Casey Michel, a US based investigative journalist, and author of the upcoming book American Kleptocracy, to get his insights…
There is a lot to digest in the much awaited publication of the Prime Minister’s Integrated Review (IR) of UK international policy. It is a weighty enough document of over…
The publication of the long awaited Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, entitled ‘Global Britain in a competitive age’, should finally help give greater clarity to the…
This spring, the UK’s Foreign Secretary is set to announce a new stand-alone corruption sanctions regime which will give the Government power to impose visa bans and asset freezes on…
As part of our Unsafe for Scrutiny project, the Foreign Policy Centre (FPC) is starting a new series of fortnightly articles focused on topics at the intersection of anti-corruption and…
On January 31st 2021, Britain marked one full year of its first-known case of COVID-19. Since then, both the economy and key industries, including aviation have been decimated. From…
It is often said Brexit has exposed deep problems in British democracy. But while this opinion is widely held, there is little agreement on the nature of these deficiencies. Brexit…
After a prolonged period of introspection and tensions with longstanding partners, this publication shows the many different ways in which a Global Britain can reinvigorate its relationships with allies, alliances…
Alliances and partnerships have been at the heart of the UK’s foreign policy throughout its history and they will be central its future. While at different points in history the…
2020 will be remembered for the Coronavirus pandemic, the end of Donald Trump’s US Presidency, and the year in which Britain finally left the EU. It was also the year…
During her time as British Prime Minister handling Brexit, Theresa May was fond of pointing out that “the UK is leaving the European Union but it is not leaving Europe”.[1]…
The UK’s relationship with the Council of Europe presents a paradox. In many ways, the UK is an exemplar within this organisation of 47 states. The UK was a founding…
The UK plays a leading role in responding to global challenges and has traditionally excelled at maximising foreign policy opportunities for national security and development.[1] However, within a shifting geo-political,…
With the COVID-19 pandemic battering the world socially and economically, both the Director General of the World Health Organization, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and the Secretary General of the United…
Following the 2016 Brexit referendum, successive governments have been keen to emphasise that Britain’s withdrawal from the EU is not a rejection of international institutions and cooperation more broadly. Advocates…
The global order is changing: traditional champions of international cooperation work to undermine the system of rules they helped build and multilateral organisations face a crisis of legitimacy at the…
In December 2016, in a speech at Chatham House, then UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson talked about the promise of a post-Brexit UK “to be more outward-looking and more engaged…
The contemporary world of international relations is marked by two major countervailing trends. First, is a number of complicated existential threats, like climate change and pandemics, which require earnest international…
Every few years, Western leaders raise the idea of democracies working in 'alliance' or 'concert' on global challenges. The late US Senator John McCain, an esteemed supporter of transatlantic cooperation,…
The contributions to this essay collection highlight the range of different opportunities that a truly engaged Global Britain can take advantage of on the world stage as it seeks to…
2021 is going to be an important year for the UK’s global ambitions. Exiting both the post-Brexit transition period and, vaccines permitting, the toughest COVID restrictions the UK will have…
This essay collection asks, and tries to answer, the question ‘what can Britain do now?’ It is an examination of the emerging tools and strategies the UK can use to…
The NSxNG approach to making future UK foreign policy and wider national strategy In the context of Brexit and COVID-19, there is a growing sense that we need to collectively…
The Government’s current Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy seeks to position the UK after Brexit and in the context of a Biden-administration taking office. My…
Ever since the referendum, Boris Johnson, Theresa May and other Conservative Party politicians have presented Brexit as the first step toward building a new ‘Global Britain’. As Johnson declared in…
The global pandemic has put pressures on public services and on government revenue streams all around the world. Immediate measures being discussed include wealth taxes on those most able to…
Four years on from the vote to leave the European Union (EU) much has been written about the UK’s international role in a post-Brexit world. Only recently, however, has the…
In January, for the first time in nearly 50 years, the UK will ‘take back control’ of its trade policy from the EU. During and since the referendum campaign, Brexit-supporting…
Turn off the lights in Moscow? This is just one of the possible uses of offensive cyber operations (OCOs) briefed to the press by senior British defence sources.[1] Put simply,…
For the last 23 years, since the birth of the Blair government, a key aspect of British foreign policy, and indeed Britain’s global reputation, has been its overseas development aid…
The Government’s roadmap for 2020 has not quite unfolded the way they might have initially hoped, with a global pandemic liable to disrupt even the best laid plans. The current…
This publication recommends how the UK Government can decide the principles and values that should underpin its concept of Global Britain’ and provides some strong suggestions of what they should…
This publication explores the ethical basis on which the UK’s emerging post-Brexit foreign policy is being built, examining the principles and values that should help define it and looks at…
Revising and reviving a values-based foreign policy at a time of unprecedented global fragility, complexity and uncertainty is an intimidating proposition. The strategic environment has radically shifted from the heady…
The Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, provides a welcome opportunity for a comprehensive review of the UK’s positioning in world politics. It comes at a pivotal…
Summary Ethics are a fundamental aspect of foreign policy, not an add-on. They should be grounded in the relationship between government and the governed. This would involve far more engagement…
In the context of recent changes to the structure of the foreign policy and international aid apparatus, and considering the upcoming Integrated Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy Review, here…
The maintenance and enhancement of the international rules-based system (IRBS) has been an essential British interest in the 75 years since the end of the Second World War. Having contributed…
Of today’s major and emerging crises, the vast majority – including Syria, Yemen, Libya, Myanmar, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Venezuela, and Xinjiang – are driven, at least…
The core purpose of this short publication has been to try and tease out how the UK Government can decide on the values that should underpin the UK’s evolving ‘Global…
On April 4th 2020 Keir Starmer was voted in as new leader of the Labour Party by a considerable margin against his rivals. One of his key campaign pledges was…
In conflict affected and vulnerable regions around the world the impact from and reactions to Covid-19 are differentiated. Different countries find themselves at varying stages of the pandemic. The situation is variable according to…
Spare a thought for my generation - Generation X, the generation born immediately following the Baby Boom, from the mid-1960s to the end of the 1970s. Mine was the generation…
The United Kingdom is preparing for its post-Brexit place in the world at a time when the principles of liberal democracy and the rules-based world order are facing their greatest…
Since Brexit’s inception, immigration has been a hugely dominant theme. Theresa May’s government pledged to reduce net migration to the ‘tens of thousands’, a proclamation[1] aimed at capitalising on anti-immigrant…
“Technology is, of course, a double edged sword. Fire can cook our food but also burn us.” Jason Silva, the Venezuelan-American filmmaker and public speaker Last year marked the 70th…
One of the most profound characteristics of the public debates on Brexit is the substantial lack of attention to its international implications. The Brexit issue is naturally debated in the…
Brexit is an attempt to tackle domestic problems by altering our relationship with our European neighbours. Some feel that this is doomed to fail because our economy and security is…
As the Brexit process appears to be drawing to an uncertain close, there are still lessons to be learned from the past three years for the United Kingdom and the…
The British and the Europeans are not the only two publics, holding their breath and waiting for the outcome of Brexit. Turkey is also observing the situation, hoping for the…
As like-minded partners, sharing many policy traditions, norms and standards the EU and UK have every strategic interest in working together on a values-based foreign policy post-Brexit. In the ongoing…
Is Brexit just a choice between the Chequers deal or a ‘hard Brexit’? Supporters of ‘associate citizenship’ believe there is not. The proposed associate citizenship would allow individuals to enjoy…
As the UK faces the uncertainty of Brexit, this article examines how its policies towards third countries including enlargement, trade, migration, development and energy policies have been mediated through the…
At first sight, EU relations with Switzerland might seem a ‘niche’ topic for a British observer. But in fact current developments are rather important in understanding potential models for the…
The UK’s departure from the European Union (EU) in 2019 will provide an opportunity for the country to re-define its foreign policy. This opportunity is greatest in regions where the…
Catalonia’s recent independence referendum and outcome is a reminder of nationalism’s flawed promise: The myth of a swift divorce that is also apparent in Britain’s Brexit debâcle. Both cases give…
In his book, More Human, former Downing Street policy chief Steve Hilton argues that, in certain sectors, despite the rhetoric of the ‘free-market’, enterprises succeed by ‘entrenching their advantages through…
In this FPC Briefing Sam Fowles argues that human rights are the ultimate arbiter of the relationship between the state and the individual, yet a new generation of trade and…
Download PDFFrom the FPC's Europe and the people: Examining the EU's democratic legitimacy London Conference on October 26th 2016 the After Brexit: Can we build a new democratic foundation for UK-EU…
In recent days there has been a great deal of debate surrounding the humanitarian imperatives for aiding refugees from the Middle East. This new briefing by Dr Simon Mabon builds…
Download PDFThis seminar, organised by the FPC and the SEPAD (Sectarianism, Proxies and De-sectarianisation) project at the Richardson Institute for Peace at Lancaster University, aims to look at the evolving picture across the region, looking at the key challenges on the ground, the continuing geo-strategic tensions and the impact of the Biden Administration’s policy agenda. The diplomatic dynamics are becoming increasingly complex with traditional Western allies – such as Saudi Arabia, ...
More infoRt Hon Alistair Burt, Pro-Chancellor at Lancaster University and former Minister of State for the Middle East
Professor Simon Mabon, Director of the SEPAD project and Chair in International Politics at Lancaster University
Dr Edward Wastnidge, Deputy Director of the SEPAD project and Senior Lecturer in Politics & International Studies at the Open University
Dr May Darwich, Lecturer in International Relations of the Middle East at the University of Birmingham
Chair: Baroness Northover, Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson on Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The event will take place on Zoom.
In summer 2022, Birmingham will be hosting the Commonwealth Games, the UK’s first ‘sport mega event’ in this post-Brexit landscape. The 2012 Olympics presented a clear positive vision of the UK as a young, dynamic and diverse country, as well as showcasing the UK’s longer term vision of its future with sustainability and legacy being a core part of the message. The 2022 Commonwealth Games present a similar opportunity to ...
More infoBaroness Grey-Thompson, Paralympian, Crossbench Peer in the House of Lords and Broadcaster
Chris Matheson MP, Shadow Minister for Media
Neale Coleman CBE, Senior Advisor on London 2012
Sunder Katwala, Director of British Future
Dr Daniel Fitzpatrick, Lecturer at Aston Centre for Europe
The event will take place on Zoom.
Barely into the start of 2021 and events around the world have brought the question of global corruption and the fight against it sharply into focus. Noticeable is the increasing divergence between governing authorities in the US and UK’s approach towards tackling anti-corruption and money laundering. The new Biden administration has clearly identified corruption as ‘a core national security interest’ and recent ‘historic’ legislation passed through US Congress takes aim ...
More infoTom Burgis, investigative journalist at The Financial Times and author of ‘Kleptopia: How Dirty Money Is Conquering the World’
Casey Michel, US investigative journalist and author of upcoming book ‘American Kleptocracy’
Dr Tena Prelec, Research Fellow with the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Oxford
Dr Sue Hawley, Executive Director of Spotlight on Corruption
Chair: Susan Coughtrie, Project Director at the Foreign Policy Centre
The event will take place on Zoom.
This public zoom event is part of the Foreign Policy Centre’s ongoing Finding Britain’s role in a changing world project responding to the UK’s Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy. It will comprise a short keynote speech from Tom Tugendhat MP, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, expert responses and an audience Q&A session. The event will take stock of the deliberations around the Government’s Integrated ...
More infoTom Tugendhat MP, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee
Dr Kate Ferguson, Co-Director of Protection Approaches
Benjamin Ward, UK Director of Human Rights Watch
Chair: Deborah Haynes, Foreign Affairs Editor, Sky News
The event will take place on Zoom.
This Foreign Policy Centre and Oxfam event will launch our new collection of short essays that seeks to re-examine and re-imagine the UK’s foreign policy and discuss its findings about how Britain can best respond to global challenges. The collection of essays features the panellists listed, as well as Rt Hon Tobias Ellwood MP (Chair of the Defence Select Committee), Caroline Lucas MP (former Green Party Leader), Stephen Twigg (former ...
More infoBaroness Anelay, Chair of the House of Lords International Relations and Defence Select Committee
Lord McConnell, Former First Minister of Scotland
Theo Clarke MP, Member of the International Development Select Committee
Dr Emily Jones, Global Economic Governance Programme, Blavatnik School of Government at University of Oxford
Danny Sriskandarajah, Chief Executive, Oxfam GB
Chair: Adam Hug, Director, The Foreign Policy Centre
Committee Room 12, Houses of Parliament, London, SW1A 0AA