DIPLO Blog

Skip to content Aidan Liddle UK Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament Part of Conference on Disarmament 27th August 2020 Geneva, Switzerland Disarmament blog: a new initiative on outer space security When we think about security in outer space, it’s tempting to fall back on tropes from science fiction or the movies – dramatic battles between space-suited soldiers in Moonraker, or powerful weapons threatening planets in Star Wars. In reality, there are threats to security and stability on Earth involving outer space, but they don’t include Death Stars. The vast potential of space has been widely recognised since the dawn of the space age. Already in 1959 the UN set up a Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), in Vienna, which agreed a series of important conventions in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and last year adopted 21 guidelines for the long-term sustainability of outer space activities. The potential military uses of space feat..

Skip to content Aidan Liddle UK Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament Part of Conference on Disarmament 27th August 2020 Geneva, Switzerland Disarmament blog: a new initiative on outer space security When we think about security in outer space, it’s tempting to fall back on tropes from science fiction or the movies – dramatic battles between space-suited soldiers in Moonraker, or powerful weapons threatening planets in Star Wars. In reality, there are threats to security and stability on Earth involving outer space, but they don’t include Death Stars. The vast potential of space has been widely recognised since the dawn of the space age. Already in 1959 the UN set up a Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), in Vienna, which agreed a series of important conventions in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and last year adopted 21 guidelines for the long-term sustainability of outer space activities. The potential military uses of space feat..

Skip to content Professor Carole Mundell Chief Scientific Adviser Part of Coronavirus (COVID-19) 24th August 2020 London, United Kingdom Scientists from the first UK lab to work on live COVID-19: ‘We knew this virus was going to be different’ Over the past few months, my work has been dominated by the UK’s response to COVID-19, and how we can tackle this pandemic together internationally. I and my colleagues have been in touch with UK universities up and down the country, who are working tirelessly on researching COVID-19. We’ve heard from Andrew Davidson and David Matthews, who are founder members of the Bristol University COVID-19 Emergency Research (UNCOVER) Group. With a combined 20-years’ experience on coronaviruses, we were keen to hear more about their discoveries and understand why they believe international collaboration is key to overcoming the pandemic.Tell us about your first few months working on coronavirus and the ground-breaking discoveries at the University of Bristol..

Skip to content Professor Carole Mundell Foreign and Commonwealth Office Chief Scientific Adviser Part of Coronavirus (COVID-19) 24th August 2020 London, United Kingdom Scientists from the first UK lab to work on live COVID-19: ‘We knew this virus was going to be different’ Over the past few months, my work has been dominated by the UK’s response to COVID-19, and how we can tackle this pandemic together internationally. I and my colleagues have been in touch with UK universities up and down the country, who are working tirelessly on researching COVID-19. We’ve heard from Andrew Davidson and David Matthews, who are founder members of the Bristol University COVID-19 Emergency Research (UNCOVER) Group. With a combined 20-years’ experience on coronaviruses, we were keen to hear more about their discoveries and understand why they believe international collaboration is key to overcoming the pandemic.Tell us about your first few months working on coronavirus and the ground-breaking discover..

Skip to content Professor Carole Mundell Foreign and Commonwealth Office Chief Scientific Adviser Part of Coronavirus (COVID-19) 24th August 2020 London, United Kingdom Scientists from the first UK lab to work on live COVID-19: ‘We knew this virus was going to be different’ Over the past few months, my work has been dominated by the UK’s response to COVID-19, and how we can tackle this pandemic together internationally. I and my colleagues have been in touch with UK universities up and down the country, who are working tirelessly on researching COVID-19. We’ve heard from Andrew Davidson and David Matthews, who are founder members of the Bristol University COVID-19 Emergency Research (UNCOVER) Group. With a combined 20-years’ experience on coronaviruses, we were keen to hear more about their discoveries and understand why they believe international collaboration is key to overcoming the pandemic.Tell us about your first few months working on coronavirus and the ground-breaking discover..

Skip to content Matt Field British Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina Part of UK in Bosnia and Herzegovina 21st August 2020 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina PRIDE (In the Name of Love) Last September, I counted myself lucky to join hundreds of others in the first ever PRIDE march in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Despite security concerns beforehand, it was a happy and joyful event, a celebration showing that this country is a home and open to all. This year there will be no physical event – a responsible decision given the COVID19 situation. But we will be with the same communities in spirit, through online events. Please follow @bh.povorkaponosa Facebook page for more details. The theme of this year’s PRIDE in BiH is ‘Nije život četiri zida’ – ‘No life within four walls’. It captures the experience of many LGBTI people that they cannot be themselves out in the world, that they are trapped. It is perhaps an experience that is easier to understand and empathise with after the last six mont..

Skip to content Matt Field British Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina Part of UK in Bosnia and Herzegovina 21st August 2020 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina PRIDE (In the Name of Love) Last September, I counted myself lucky to join hundreds of others in the first ever PRIDE march in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Despite security concerns beforehand, it was a happy and joyful event, a celebration showing that this country is a home and open to all. This year there will be no physical event – a responsible decision given the COVID19 situation. But we will be with the same communities in spirit, through online events. Please follow @bh.povorkaponosa Facebook page for more details. The theme of this year’s PRIDE in BiH is ‘Nije život četiri zida’ – ‘No life within four walls’. It captures the experience of many LGBTI people that they cannot be themselves out in the world, that they are trapped. It is perhaps an experience that is easier to understand and empathise with after the last six mont..

Skip to content Matt Field British Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina Part of UK in Bosnia and Herzegovina 21st August 2020 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina PRIDE (In the Name of Love) Last September, I counted myself lucky to join hundreds of others in the first ever PRIDE march in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Despite security concerns beforehand, it was a happy and joyful event, a celebration showing that this country is a home and open to all. This year there will be no physical event – a responsible decision given the COVID19 situation. But we will be with the same communities in spirit, through online events. Please follow @bh.povorkaponosa Facebook page for more details. The theme of this year’s PRIDE in BiH is ‘Nije život četiri zida’ – ‘No life within four walls’. It captures the experience of many LGBTI people that they cannot be themselves out in the world, that they are trapped. It is perhaps an experience that is easier to understand and empathise with after the last six mont..

Skip to content Mikael Allan Mikaelsson PhD, Science and Innovation Policy Advisor, Europe Head of Clean Growth & Climate Change 17th August 2020 Stockholm, Sweden The European Energy Transition Over the last year, the UK government’s international Science and Innovation Network has been collaborating with UK Research & Innovation and the Energy Systems Catapult (ESC) to produce a market study to identify some of the key European countries that are seeing significant changes in their domestic energy system as a result of the energy transition and the most exciting markets for smart systems and flexibility business models. The work carried out by ESC, identified six priority countries from an assessment of 31 countries across Europe, which are either making considerable inroads or have favourable conditions for the scale-up in the use of smart and flexible energy innovation and solution, as Europe continues its journey to meet it climate commitments. The importance of this kind of work..

Skip to content Mikael Allan Mikaelsson PhD, Science and Innovation Policy Advisor, Europe Head of Clean Growth & Climate Change 17th August 2020 Stockholm, Sweden The European Energy Transition Over the last year, the UK government’s international Science and Innovation Network has been collaborating with UK Research & Innovation and the Energy Systems Catapult (ESC) to produce a market study to identify some of the key European countries that are seeing significant changes in their domestic energy system as a result of the energy transition and the most exciting markets for smart systems and flexibility business models. The work carried out by ESC, identified six priority countries from an assessment of 31 countries across Europe, which are either making considerable inroads or have favourable conditions for the scale-up in the use of smart and flexible energy innovation and solution, as Europe continues its journey to meet it climate commitments. The importance of this kind of work..