NATO Ambassador's Romance with Young Intern Stuns Diplomatic Circles
Britain's ambassador to NATO has reportedly left the diplomatic community astonished by embarking on a romantic relationship with an Italian intern nearly half his age. Senior figures have expressed significant concerns about the propriety of 55-year-old Angus Lapsley, a father of two, dating his 29-year-old assistant Francesca Cortini.
An Open Secret Among Diplomats
The pair are understood to have first met when Cortini was a 27-year-old intern at NATO headquarters. This development occurred shortly after Lapsley narrowly avoided dismissal for an almost comical security breach where he left fifty pages of top-secret documents at a bus stop in Kent.
Their romance has now become what sources describe as an open secret within diplomatic circles. There are suggestions that the couple may even be residing together at the luxurious British residence in Belgium, a five-storey hotel property that Lapsley is entitled to use alongside two colleagues.
A source revealed to The Times: "They have made no attempt to hide their relationship. Angus used the residence as if it was his, and the woman was there for Christmas and summer receptions."
Senior Officials Raise Alarms
Lapsley reportedly withdrew from a scheduled meeting at NATO headquarters on Wednesday after both he and the Foreign Office became aware that details of his relationship were about to become public knowledge. The eyebrow-raising romance has been deemed sufficiently concerning that it has been brought to the attention of Admiral Sir Keith Blount, the most senior British officer serving within NATO.
Furthermore, Dame Caroline Wilson, the United Kingdom's soon-to-be ambassador to the European Union, has also expressed alarm. She stated it is inappropriate for the couple to be living together at the idyllic Rue Ducale townhouse in Brussels, which serves as an official diplomatic residence.
NATO's Stance on the Relationship
Despite these concerns, NATO has determined that Lapsley and Cortini's controversial relationship does not violate any existing organizational guidelines. An official clarified: "NATO requires all managers to declare any real or perceived conflict of interest. This policy is longstanding and has not been changed in recent years."
Unlike the strict protocols within the British military, NATO does not consider romantic relations within a chain of command to be a sackable offence. This stands in stark contrast to last year's case involving former First Sea Lord Ben Kay, who was dismissed and stripped of his Admiral rank for having an affair with a subordinate.
Background of the Ambassador
According to reports, Lapsley has informed his superiors at NATO about this new romantic involvement, which began following his separation from his wife Gina. The diplomat was appointed as the UK's ambassador to NATO in 2025, less than four years after facing a serious investigation for a major security blunder.
While on secondment to the Ministry of Defence from the Foreign Office, Lapsley left fifty pages of confidential documents at a bus stop in Kent. These files contained the secret locations of British special forces soldiers operating in Kabul, Afghanistan. A source indicated the documents fell from his bag as he hurried to work and were later discovered, wet and piled up, by a member of the public.
This security mishap provoked a furious reaction from senior American officials, who feared it could have endangered allied troops in South Asia. At the time, Lapsley was serving as director-general for strategy and international at the Ministry of Defence and had been lined up for the NATO ambassador role—a position he ultimately had to wait four years to assume.
His security clearance was temporarily suspended following the incident but was later reinstated after a thorough investigation. He was subsequently appointed to a planning role before finally succeeding Sir David Quarrey as the UK's permanent representative to NATO just last month.
