ALKHOBAR, 8 February 2007 — “Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles KCMG, LVO has been appointed Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.” So began the statement from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The announcement was a surprise to everyone, as Sir Sherard would normally have been posted for at least another year in the Kingdom.
“It was a surprise to me,” said Sir Sherard, Britain’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia. “It’s the result of a reevaluation of our policy on Afghanistan in London. With the departure of Gen. Richards, the ministers in London wanted a more senior representative, so I am being sent there as ambassador to lead the reinforced British presence from the embassy. It’s all happened at rather short notice. It wasn’t what I expected or planned, but I am proud to be able to try to serve our common interests there, though I don’t pretend that it’s going to be easy.”
Afghanistan will be an unaccompanied posting, meaning that Sir Sherard’s family will not be with him, although he stated that Lady Bridget and their five children do plan to visit him there. Currently the family is focused on the details of their move from the Kingdom, including making new living arrangements for their two falcons, Nour and Alwaleed, who cannot be taken to the UK due to British veterinary regulations.
Sir Sherard was in the Eastern Province concluding necessary business and bidding farewell to his many friends in the area. The public events that he attended on Monday and Tuesday were packed with well wishers. In brief comments to the British business community on Monday night, he remarked on how proud he was with the way the British community in the Kingdom stood firm in the face of what was a very tough time, particularly in 2004.
“It is very heartening to see British families returning and fewer left in the first place than some other nationalities,” said Sir Sherard.
“The rolls at all five British schools in Saudi Arabia are rising rapidly again. Beyond that I’ve also been hugely impressed by the way in which the Saudi authorities have tackled and contained what was a serious terrorist threat. They’ve shrunk the pool of support for terrorism. They have understood that fighting terrorism is a matter of hearts and minds just as much as, or even more so, than security measures.”
The British ambassador observed that since he arrived in the Kingdom in 2003, the Saudi-British relationship has gone from strength to strength.
“Traffic in people, in trade and investment, in both directions, has risen enormously,” he said. “British investment in the Kingdom we now estimate to be worth at least $12 billion. We have been pleased to welcome a growing number of Saudi students in Britain. And above all we’ve been proud of our visa policy, where 95 percent of Saudis applying for a visa before 9 a.m. on a workday obtain their visas by 2 p.m. the same working day. We hope that this year as part of our plans to modernize our visa operations we will have a visa office here in the Eastern Province.”
Sir Sherard explained that worldwide the British government is contracting out part of its visa services. This means that the passports of individuals requesting British visas are collected and delivered by private sector contractors. That leaves the UK’s visa offices to concentrate on putting visas in passports, rather than logistics. In the Eastern Province this would allow people to drop off their passports at the visa office on one day and collect them the next.
The British ambassador is genuinely disappointed to be leaving Saudi Arabia and he described his time here as rewarding and treasured.
“The two things that have really made Saudi Arabia so enjoyable for my family and for me are first, the extraordinary variety of the deserts in Saudi Arabia, and second and more important, the people, their kindness, the lack of ‘kalam fadi’ (nonsense) among Saudis,” he said. “They are straight, true friends. I hope and believe we will keep these friendships for life.”
It is expected the new British ambassador to Saudi Arabia, as yet unannounced, will be introduced to the local community at the annual celebrations for the Queen’s Birthday in April. Sir Sherard mentioned that thanks to the inspiration of Terry Evans, the head of the British Trade Office in Alkhobar, there will be a British Week, starting April 23, exclusively in the Eastern Province.
“That week will have special seminars in regard to training. We think that training is one area where Britain can contribute most in Saudi Arabia, especially in training young people, both men and women to compete in the marketplace,” advised the British ambassador. “There will also be the Queen’s Birthday Party with a band from the Royal Air Force.
There will be a visit to Jubail and a day of women’s events. The only thing there won’t be is a London bus on the streets of Alkhobar.”
Of course, Sir Sherard will be absent too. That is the Kingdom’s loss, but if his mission in Afghanistan succeeds, it will be a gain for the cause of peace and stability in our world.
