David Fields CO81 on Military Service and Diplomacy

Truro School recently welcomed Old Truronian David Fields CO81 for an insightful career talk on Microsoft Teams exploring life in the military and the world of international diplomacy. Drawing on decades of experience across the Royal Navy, government, and diplomatic service, David offered students a candid and engaging account of his career path, the challenges he faced, and the opportunities available to young people considering similar routes.

David began by reflecting on his time at school, where he studied French, Latin, and English at A-Level. After leaving Truro, he joined the Royal Navy, a decision that would shape the rest of his professional life. While training at Britannia Royal Naval College, an opportunity arose for him to learn Russian, a skill which would ultimately steer his career within the Royal Navy, the Ministry of Defence, the British Embassy in Moscow, and finally as a defence consultant. He has recently published a book, The Royal and Russian Navies: Cooperation, Competition and Confrontation, co-authored with Robert Avery.

A key focus of the careers talk was on what it takes to succeed in diplomacy. David identified three essential skills: communication, networking, and empathy. He explained that diplomacy is as much about understanding people and cultures as it is about politics and strategy. His linguistic abilities, combined with these interpersonal skills, allowed him to operate effectively in complex and often high-pressure environments.

David also spoke openly about the most challenging periods of his career. One particularly difficult time was in 2014, when he was living in Russia during Putin’s annexation of Crimea. He reflected on the weight of responsibility involved in making career decisions that affected not only his work, but also his family life. His family lived in Russia on two separate occasions, and he described military and diplomatic service as, in many ways, a “selfish career”, given how deeply it can affect personal and family circumstances.

In addition to his operational work, David discussed the process of writing and publishing his book, offering students an insight into how he reflected on and shared his professional experiences.

The talk concluded with a lively question-and-answer session. Students asked about David’s day-to-day work with NATO, how studying Latin had helped him in learning Russian, and whether advances in translation and AI technology would influence future careers in diplomatic roles which required multi-lingual candidates to apply.