Britain

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) may have been hosting the London Conference on Somalia but there was no doubting that Downing Street was in the driving seat.

After two decades of political mayhem, Somalis and more perspicacious foreign diplomats are intensely sceptical about high-level conferences. Many approach the London Conference on Somalia on 23 February...

Confusion still surrounds British arms company BAE Systems’ failure to make its promised ex-gratia payment of £29.5 million (US$45.6 mn.) to Tanzania, as part of a global settlement...

Britain is refusing to follow United States President Barack Obama in joining the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. Asked why Britain would not take part, even though EITI was...

Hearings in the British parliament over the £29.5 million (US$47 mn.) BAE Systems must pay Tanzania over the radar affair have revived questions about whether any Tanzanians, especially...

Accusations of corruption against police chiefs, plans for state interference with the media and innuendo about politicians compromised by business associates – British Prime Minister David Cameron and...

Britain’s Africa Minister Henry Bellingham was in Nairobi ‘promoting British interests’, officials said. However, few expected that to include delivering extradition warrants for two prominent Kenyans for fraud...

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development had criticised the delays in implementing the new Act but stayed silent when the guidance came out at the end of March. Britain...

Gamal Mubarak, Egyptian presidential son and putative heir (until he announced on 3 February that he would not stand for President) of beleaguered President Hosni Mubarak, was widely rumoured to be...

UK businesses lobbying against the new Bribery Act seem to be having some success (see Confidential Agenda, week ending 28 January). The government has postponed implementation of the Act, already...