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Foreign and Commonwealth Office


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░░Overview░░Politics ░░Economy ░░Armed Forces░░Culture ░░International ░░
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“Rule Britannia, Britannia Rules the Waves. Britons never, never, never shall be slaves.”
James Thomson, 1740

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God Save the Queen
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Foreign and Commonwealth Office



FCO Main Building, London, seen from
Whitehall



Formed: 1782, 239 years ago (as the Foreign
Office)
Preceding agencies:

Commonwealth Office
Foreign Office

Jurisdiction: United Kingdom
Headquarters: King Charles Street, London
Annual Budget: £1.1 bn (2021)
Ministers:

Rt Hon. Sir Thomas Jones: Secreatary of State for
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

Rt Hon. Lord Goldsmith: Minister of State for the
Pacific and the Environment

Rt Hon. James Cleverly: Minister of State for the
Middle East and North Africa

Rt Hon. Lord Ahmad: Minister of State for South
Asia and the Commonwealth

Rt Hon, Wendy Morton: Minister for Europe and the
Americas

Department executive:

Sir Philip Barton KCMG OBE: Permanent Under-
Secretary and Head of the Diplomatic Service

Child agencies:

Department for International Development
FCO Services
Wilton Park


The Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO), commonly called the Foreign Office (FO), is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for protecting and promoting British interests worldwide and was created in 1968 by the merger of the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.

The head of the FCO is the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, commonly abbreviated to "Foreign Secretary". This is regarded as one of the four most prestigious positions in the Cabinet – the Great Offices of State – alongside those of Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Home Secretary.

The FCO is managed from day to day by a civil servant, the Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, who also acts as the Head of Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service. This position is held by Sir Philip Barton, who took office on 2 September 2020.

In September 2020, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office was formed from merging with the Department for International Development and the Foreign Secretary's responsibilities merged with those of the Secretary of State for International Development.


Responsibilities

According to the FCO website, the department's key responsibilities (as of 2020) are as follows:

  • Safeguarding the UK's national security by countering terrorism and weapons proliferation, and working to reduce conflict.

  • Building the UK's prosperity by increasing exports and investment, opening markets, ensuring access to resources, and promoting sustainable global growth.

  • Supporting British nationals around the world through modern and efficient consular services.

In addition to the above responsibilities, the FCO is responsible for the British Crown Colonies. This arrangement has been subject to criticism in the UK and in the overseas territories; for instance, the Chief Minister of Anguilla, Victor Banks, said: "We are not foreign; neither are we members of the Commonwealth, so we should have a different interface with the UK that is based on mutual respect". There have been numerous suggestions on ways to improve the relationship between the overseas territories and the UK. Suggestions have included setting up a dedicated department to handle relations with the overseas territories and the absorption of the OTD in the Cabinet Office, thus affording the overseas territories with better connections to the centre of government.


History

Eighteenth century

The Foreign Office was formed in March 1782 by combining the Southern and Northern Departments of the Secretary of State, each of which covered both foreign and domestic affairs in their parts of the Kingdom. The two departments' foreign affairs responsibilities became the Foreign Office, whilst their domestic affairs responsibilities were assigned to the Home Office. The Home Office is technically the senior.

Nineteenth century


The western end of the FCO Main Building in
1866, facing St Jame's Park. It was then
occuppied by the Foreign and India Offices,
while the Home and Colonial Offices
occupied the Whitehall end.

During the 19th century, it was not infrequent for the Foreign Office to approach The Times newspaper and ask for continental intelligence, which was often superior to that conveyed by official sources. Examples of journalists who specialized in foreign affairs and were well connected to politicians included: Henry Southern, Valentine Chirol, Harold Nicolson, and Robert Bruce Lockhart.

Twentieth century

During the First World War, the Arab Bureau was set up within the British Foreign Office as a section of the Cairo Intelligence Department. During the early cold war an important department was the Information Research Department, set up to counter Soviet propaganda and infiltration. The Foreign Office hired its first woman diplomat, Monica Milne, in 1946.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (1968-Present)

The FCO was formed on 17 October 1968, from the merger of the short-lived Commonwealth Office and the Foreign Office. The Commonwealth Office had been created only in 1966, by the merger of the Commonwealth Relations Office and the Colonial Office, the Commonwealth Relations Office having been formed by the merger of the Dominions Office and the India Office in 1947—with the Dominions Office having been split from the Colonial Office in 1925.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office held responsibility for international development issues between 1970 and 1974, and again between 1979 and 1997.

The National Archives website contains a Government timeline to show the departments responsible for Foreign Affairs from 1945.

Under New Labour (1997-2010)

From 1997, international development became the responsibility of the separate Department for International Development.

When David Miliband took over as Foreign Secretary in June 2007, he set in hand a review of the FCO's strategic priorities. One of the key messages of these discussions was the conclusion that the existing framework of ten international strategic priorities, dating from 2003, was no longer appropriate. Although the framework had been useful in helping the FCO plan its work and allocate its resources, there was agreement that it needed a new framework to drive its work forward.

The new strategic framework consists of three core elements:

  • A flexible global network of staff and offices, serving the whole of the UK Government

  • Three essential services that support the British economy, British nationals abroad and managed migration for Britain. These services are delivered through UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), consular teams in Britain and overseas, and UK Visas and Immigration

  • Four policy goals; countering terrorism and weapons proliferation and their causes, preventing and resolving conflict, promoting a low-carbon, high-growth, global economy, and developing effective international institutions, in particular the United Nations and the European Union.

In August 2005, a report by management consultant group Collinson Grant was made public by Andrew Mackinlay. The report severely criticised the FCO's management structure, noting:

  • The Foreign Office could be "slow to act"

  • Delegation is lacking within the management structure

  • Accountability was poor

  • The FCO could feasibly cut 1200 jobs

  • At least £48 million could be saved annually


New UK Diplomatic Posts - April 2013

The Foreign Office commissioned the report to highlight areas which would help it achieve its pledge to reduce spending by £87 million over three years. In response to the report being made public, the Foreign Office stated it had already implemented the report's recommendations.

In 2009, Gordon Brown created the position of Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) to the FCO. The first science adviser was David C. Clary.

On 25 April 2010, the department apologised after The Sunday Telegraph obtained a "foolish" document calling for the upcoming September visit of Pope Benedict XVI to be marked by the launch of "Benedict-branded" condoms, the opening of an abortion clinic and the blessing of a same-sex marriage.

Coalition and Conservatives

In 2012, the Foreign Office was criticised by Gerald Steinberg, of the Jerusalem-based research institute NGO Monitor, saying that the Foreign Office and the Department for International Development provided more than £500,000 in funding to Palestinian NGOs which he said "promote political attacks on Israel." In response, a spokesman for the Foreign Office said "we are very careful about who and what we fund. The objective of our funding is to support efforts to achieve a two-state solution. Funding a particular project for a limited period of time does not mean that we endorse every single action or public comment made by an NGO or by its employees."

In September 2012, the FCO and the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs signed a Memorandum of Understanding on diplomatic cooperation, which promotes the co-location of embassies, the joint provision of consular services, and common crisis response. The project has been criticised for further diminishing the UK's influence in Europe.

In 2011, the then Foreign Secretary, William Hague, announced the government's intention to a number of new diplomatic posts in order to enhance the UK's overseas network. As such, eight new embassies and six new consulates were opened around the world


Ministers

Minister

Image

Rank

Portfolio

Rt Hon. Sir Thomas Jones

Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs

Strategy Directorate; national security; intelligence; honours; Europe; all major spending decisions, and overall delivery and management of the 0.7% of Gross National Income spending for Official Development Assistance (ODA); working with and supporting international partners on the global response to COVID-19; Deputising for the Prime Minister.

Rt Hon James Cleverly

Minister of State for Middle East and North Africa

Middle East and North Africa conflict, humanitarian issues, human security; CHASE (Conflict, Humanitarian and Security Department); Stabilisation Unit; defence and international security; Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OCSE) and Council of Europe; Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF); safeguarding; counter terrorism.

Rt Hon. Lord Goldsmith

Minister of State for the Pacific and Environment

international climate change, environment and conservation, biodiversity; oceans; Oceania; Blue Belt; COVID-19 issues related to animal welfare; agri-food trade (for negotiations); forestry policy: domestic and international; International Whaling Commission; international oceans; illegal wildlife trade; animal welfare; green recovery; trade including standards, market access and exports, geographical indicators; lead for Forestry Commission; House of Lords Minister for Environment, including Environment Bill.

Nigel Adams MP

Minister of State for Asia

East Asia and South East Asia; economic diplomacy; trade (including Trade for Development); Economics Unit; Prosperity Fund; communications; soft power, including British Council, BBC World Service and scholarships; third-country agreements; consular; global Travel Advice; repatriations policy and operations related to COVID-19; parliamentary relations.

Rt Hon. Lord Ahmad

Minister of State for South Asia and the Commonwealth

South Asia; Commonwealth; UN and multilateral; governance and democracy; open societies and anti-corruption; human rights, including Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI); treaty policy and practice; sanctions; departmental operations: human resources and estates; COVID-19 HR issues; multilateral duties to the UN and the Commonwealth related to COVID-19.

James Durridge MP

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa; economic development; oversight of international financial institutions; CDC (UK government's development finance institution); research and evidence; medical procurement; wider supply chains.

Wendy Morton MP

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Europe and the Americas

East and South-East Europe (including Gibraltar and Akrotiri & Dhekelia); Central Asia; Americas (including the Falklands); health, global health security, neglected tropical diseases; water and sanitation; nutrition; global health including global work on COVID-19 vaccines; therapeutics and diagnostics, and multilateral health organisations including WHO; the Global Fund, GAVI (the Vaccine Alliance); cruises and contact with the cruise ship industry.

Palmerston

Chief Mouser to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Moderate success in mouse catching, unpopular with Larry, Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office


Foreign relations

Asia

Nation

Ambassador

Embassies

Relations

Notes

Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Islamic state of afghanistan

Sir Nicholas Kay

  • Britain operates an embassy in Kabul

  • Afghanistan operates an embassy in London

Positive

  • Britain heavily invests in the Afghan economy

  • Growing presence of British businesses

  • Tensions over British involvement in the War in Afghanistan

Hashemite Kingdom of Arabia
Hashemi arabia

Simon Collis CMG

  • Britain operates an Embassy in Jeddah

  • Arabia operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • Major trade and defence partner

  • Strong Royal links

  • Cultural links through T.E. Lawrence and British assistance in Arab Independence

Republic of Indonesia
Greater indonesia republic

Owen Jenkins

  • Britain operates an embassy in Jakarta

  • Indonesia operates an embassy in London

Positive

  • Major trade and investment partner

  • Strong diplomatic relations

Arab Jamahiriya of Iraq
Arab-jamahiriya

Simon Hickey

  • Britain operates an embassy in Baghdad

  • Iraq operates an embassy in London

Positive

  • Britain has become a growing investor in the Iraqi economy

  • Diplomatic relations are steadily improving

  • Tensions over former British Mandate and Gulf Wars

Zionist State of Israel
Union of Israel

Neil Wigan

  • Britain operates an embassy in Jerusalem

  • Israel operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • Major trade and defence partner

  • Strong cultural and diplomatic ties

  • Former British Mandate, strong relations with the Commonwealth

Japan
Naru japan

Julia Longbottom CMG

  • Britain operates an embassy in Tokyo

  • Japan operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • Major trade partners, Free Trade Agreements in place

  • Historic and current military ally

  • Strong co-operation in technology, research and development

Empire of Afsharid Persia
Afsharid Persia

Rob Macaire CMG

  • Britain operates an embassy in Tehran

  • Persia operates an embassy in London

Negative

  • Poor relations since the Cold War

  • Britain opposes Persian activity in supporting terrorist groups across the Middle East

  • Tensions after the Iranian Embassy Siege in 1982

Republic of the Philippines
The Phlippines

Daniel Pruce

  • Britain operates an embassy in Manila

  • The Philippines operates an embassy in London

Positive

  • Historic allies and regional partners

  • Growing economic and trade links

  • Large Philippines diaspora in the UK

Republic of China (Taiwan)
Tahwan

Catherine Nettleton CMG

  • Britain operates the British Office Taipei

  • Taiwan operates a Representative Office in London

Unrecognised

  • Due to the One China Policy, the UK does not formally recognise Taiwan

  • Unofficial diplomatic relations are however strong

  • Growing trade and investments partner

Republic of Turkey
The Turkish-State

Dominick Chilcott KCMG

  • Britain operates an embassy in Ankara

  • Turkey operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • Major trade and investment partner

  • Historic military ties and current defence agreements

  • Shared cultural and social histories

Africa

Nation

Ambassador

Embassies

Relations

Notes

Bantu People's Republic
Bantuestan

Jessica Hand

  • Britain operates an embassy in Luandu and a consulate general in Harare

  • Bantustan operates an embassy in London

Neutral

  • Minor trade partner

  • Former British colony

  • Tensions over British rule and support for pro-democracy groups

Republic of Azania
A z a n i a

Nigel Casey MVO

  • Britain operates a High Commission in Pretoria and a consulate-general in Cape Town

  • Azania operates a High Commission in London

Positive

  • Major trade and economic partner in Africa

  • Shared history, former part of the British Empire, cultural links

  • Tensions over the British Crown Colony of Walvis Bay

State of Libya
Libyan arab republic

Martin Reynolds CMG

  • Britain operates an embassy in Tripoli

  • Libya operates an embassy in London

Positive

  • Growing economic ties and investments

  • Gradually improving diplomatic ties

  • Tensions over British involvement in the war in Libya

Sultanate of North Trideshia
North trideshia

Alisdair Walker

  • Britain operates an embassy in Tadjoura

  • North Trideshia operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • Close diplomatic partners, former British colony

  • Major defence agreements, Britain operates Foreign Unit in North Trideshia

  • Major trade partner

North America

Nation

Ambassador

Embassies

Relations

Notes

Kingdom of Canada
Upper Canadas

Susan le Jeune d'Allegeeerscheque

  • Britain operates a High Commission in Ottawa

  • Canada operates a High Commission in London

Allied

  • Commonwealth and UKCA member

  • Strong trade and defence partner

  • Strong cultural and historical ties

Republic of Central America
Central American Alliance

Ross Denny

  • Britain operates an embassy in Guatemala City

  • Central America operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • Major trade and investments partner

  • Major defence and security agreements

  • Joint Anti-Narcotics Operations in the Caribbean

United States of America
-united-states-

Karen Elizabeth Pierce

  • Britain operates an embassy in Washington D.C.

  • The United States operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • Strong historical cultural ties and the 'Special Relationship'

  • Allies through NATO and the UKCA

  • Major economic and defence partner

South America

Nation

Ambassador

Embassies

Relations

Notes

Federative Republic of Brazil
Flourishing Southlands

Liz Davidson

  • Britain operates an embassy in Brasilia

  • Brazil operates an embassy in London

Positive

  • Major trade and investments partner

  • Growing defence and security agreements

  • Cultural and tourism links

Europe

Nation

Ambassador

Embassies

Relations

Notes

Republic of Byeloruthenia
Byeloruthenia

Jacqueline Perkins

  • Britain operates an embassy in Minsk

  • Byeloruthenia operates an embassy in Minsk

Hostile

  • Britain does not recognise President Lukasenko as legitimate

  • Britain has major sanctions against Byeloruthenia

French Republic
The Kingdom of Orlais

Edward Llewellyn

  • Britain operates an embassy in Paris

  • France operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • Historic military ally and cross-channel security partner

  • Major trade and investments partner

  • Cultural and historical links

Kingdom of Hannover
Georgian hannover

Robert Leigh Turner CMG

  • Britain operates an embassy in Hannover

  • Hannover operates an embassy in London

Allied

  • UKCA and Commonwealth member

  • Growing trade partner

  • Close historical ties through the Royals

Kingdom of Norway
New stolkland

Richard Wood

  • Britain operates an embassy in Oslo

  • Norway operates an embassy in London

Positive

  • Major trade and investment partners

  • Expanding defence arrangements

  • Cultural and tourism links

Ruthenian People's Republic
Rusyny

Vacant

  • Neither Britain nor Ruthenia operate embassies

Unrecognised

  • Britain does not recognise the secession of the Ruthenian People's Republic from Ukraine

Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Dvaistic republic of serbia

Sian Macleod

  • Britain operates an embassy in Belgrade

  • Yugoslavia operates an embassy in London

Positive

  • NATO member and security partner

  • Growing trade and investments partner

  • Historic links

Oceania

Nation

Ambassador

Embassies

Relations

Notes

Federation of Australia
The Australis Republic

Victoria Treadell

  • Britain operates a High Commission in Canberra

  • Australia operates a High Commission in London

Allied

  • UKCA and Commonwealth member

  • Strong cultural and historical links

  • Major trade and diplomatic partner


Greater britanniya

Edited:

RawReport