Foreign secretary

Foreign secretary may refer to:

  • Foreign minister, generally a cabinet minister in charge of a nation's foreign affairs
  • Foreign Secretary (Bangladesh), the senior civil servant in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • Foreign Secretary (India), the senior civil servant in the Ministry of External Affairs
  • Foreign Secretary (Pakistan), the senior civil servant in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the Cabinet minister who heads the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the United Kingdom
  • Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

    Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Foreign Secretary) is a senior official as one of the Great Offices of State within Her Majesty's Government and head of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The office is a British Cabinet level position.

    The Secretary of State's remit includes: relations with foreign countries, matters pertaining to the Commonwealth of Nations and the overseas territories in addition to the promotion of British interests abroad.

    The Foreign Secretary also has responsibility for the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) and the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), which are directly accountable to this person.

    Position

    The position of 'Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs' was created in the British governmental reorganisation of 1782, in which the Northern and Southern Departments became the Home and Foreign Offices, respectively. The position of 'Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs' came into existence in 1968 with the merger of the functions of 'Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs' and 'Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs' into a single Department of State. The India Office was a predecessor department of the Foreign Office.

    Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Sri Lanka)

    The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (also known as the Foreign Ministry) is a ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka that conducts and manages Sri Lanka's relations with other countries. The ministry is housed at the Republic Building in Colombo fort.

    History

    The ministry was formally established in 1948 following the independence of Ceylon as the Ministry of External Affairs and Defence, coming under the direct control of the Prime Minister of Ceylon. In 1977, J.R Jayawardena's government adapted two separate ministries, forming the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of External Affairs. A.C.S Hameed was appointed as Cabinet Minister of External Affairs.

    Overseas missions

    The ministry has 40 overseas missions including 13 High Commissions, 40 Embassies, 2 Permanent Representations to the United Nations, 14 consulates and a representative office. It provides consular assistance to Sri Lankans traveling, working and studying overseas.

    Senior officials

  • Minister of Foreign Affairs Mangala Samaraweera
  • Podcasts:

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    Latest News for: Foreign secretary

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    MoFA condoles as ex-Foreign Secretary Najmuddin Sheikh passes away

    Urdu Point 28 Mar 2025
    <p>ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 28th Mar, 2025) A distinguished diplomat and former Foreign Secretary of Pakistan Najmuddin A ... </p><p>As foreign secretary from 1994 ...
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    Former foreign secretary Najmuddin Shaikh passes away in Karachi

    Dawn 28 Mar 2025
    Former foreign secretary Najmuddin A Shaikh passed away early on Friday morning in Karachi, his family said in a statement. “It is with the most profound sorrow that we announce former Foreign ...
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    Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Meets with Petro in Colombia

    Colombia One 28 Mar 2025
    Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) Kristi Noem visited Colombia today, meeting with president Gustavo Petro and Foreign Minister Laura Sarabia ... Secretary Kristi Noem visited Colombia to sign biometrics agreement.
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    Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi chairs meeting on the repatriation of Afghan Citizen Card holders

    Urdu Point 28 Mar 2025
    </p><p>The meeting was attended by Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry, the Federal Secretary for Interior, the Secretary for Kashmir Affairs & SAFRON, Chief Secretaries and ...
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    Secretary of State Diego Morales faces criticism for 10-day India trip. Here's why he was there

    IndyStar 28 Mar 2025
    The office pointed out that foreign businesses' first point of contact in Indiana is often the secretary of state, since they have to register with the office in order to do business here.
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    Cook Islands and Czech Republic commit to strengthening collaboration

    Cook Islands News 28 Mar 2025
    During bilateral meetings with Cook Islands Foreign Minister Tingika Elikana and Foreign Secretary Tepaeru Herrmann, Ambassador Tyrer underscored the Czech Republic’s commitment to multilateral ...
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    Marco Rubio Tours Caribbean Countries

    Colombia One 28 Mar 2025
    US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is currently touring the Caribbean ... During his tour, Secretary Rubio will attend the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) summit, where he will meet the leaders of Haiti, Jamaica, Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago.
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    MHA grants journalism permit to Vanessa Dougnac a year after revoking

    Madhyamam 28 Mar 2025
    The longest-serving foreign journalist in India approached the Delhi Court in March 2024 challenging the MHA’s decision seeking permission to continue work in India.When French President Emmanuel ...
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    Nuke talks with U.S. under military threats "meaningless": Iran FM

    China.dot.org 28 Mar 2025
    TEHRAN, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said Thursday that holding direct negotiations ... He made the remarks in a phone call with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy.
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    Rubio talks commitment with UK against Iranian nuclear threat

    Cleveland Jewish News 28 Mar 2025
    The U.S. Secretary of State spoke with the UK Foreign Secretary about their goal of “ensuring Iran never develops or acquires a nuclear weapon.”The post Rubio talks commitment with UK against Iranian nuclear threat appeared first on JNS.org ... .
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    Trump administration revokes visas of over 300 foreign students in immigration crackdown

    The Times of India 28 Mar 2025
    In a significant escalation of the Trump administration's immigration policies, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Thursday that at least 300 foreign students have had their visas revoked.
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    Do non-citizens have right to free speech? Federal court to weigh in.

    Usatoday 28 Mar 2025
    ... Nationality Act, which states that the Secretary of State can move to deport any noncitizen whose presence “would have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.”.
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    The Mahmoud Khalil case just landed in New Jersey. Will it stay? What to know

    Daily Journal - Vineland 28 Mar 2025
    ... Nationality Act, which states that the Secretary of State can move to deport any noncitizen whose presence “would have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.”.
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    For exiled Tibetans, U.S. funding was always about more than just aid

    News India Times 28 Mar 2025
    Anna Kelly, the White House deputy press secretary, said Trump was “eliminating foreign aid that failed to put America First, and the Department of State is still reviewing all foreign aid programs at his direction.”.
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    'Open declaration': Hegseth slammed over new tattoo seen as insult 'to the Muslim world'

    Raw Story 28 Mar 2025
    Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was seen with a new tattoo earlier this week while visiting U.S ... He’s merely displaying America’s foreign policy and mindset to Islam and Muslims," he tweeted.
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