- “How the Home Office spent £100 million on failing to house asylum seekers” – A defunct prison in East Sussex is the latest failed attempt to solve the refugee accommodation crisis, writes Abigail Buchanan in the Telegraph.
- “Migrant hotels set to be used for four more years as Labour pushes back deadline again” – The Home Office’s top civil servant has admitted that migrant hotels will continue to be used for up to the next four years, reports the Telegraph.
- “There’s only one way to stop illegal immigration: scrap the asylum system” – The cost of the Channel crossings is a slap in the face of the British people, says Rupert Lowe in the Telegraph. Politicians must get tough or get out of the way.
- “Has Nigel Farage missed the immigration vibe shift?” – Forget nerdy micro-measures to rein in activist judges – just scrap the right of foreign nationals to challenge deportation altogether, says Patrick O’Flynn in the Spectator.
- “‘Chicken nugget immigration case weaponised ECHR’” – The Conservative leader says Western civilisation has been “hacked” by “loopholes in liberalism”, according to the Telegraph.
- “Kemi Badenoch is more interested in liberalism than conservatism” – Kemi Badenoch made a speech at the Arc conference which mentioned “liberal” or “liberalism” seven times before “conservative” got a look in, notes Patrick O’Flynn in the Spectator.
- “If this Koran incident doesn’t convince us multiculturalism has failed, nothing will” – We should not require blasphemy laws to maintain public order in Britain, writes Rakib Ehsan in the Telegraph.
- “Should burning the Koran be against the law?” – Whether Koran-burners are actually guilty of a religiously-aggravated public order offence is, to say the least, open to some doubt, says Andrew Tettenborn in the Spectator.
- “BBC HQ attacked by pro-Palestinian activists” – Pro-Palestinian activists have targeted the BBC Broadcasting House, smashing glass doors and spraying the building with red paint, reports GB News.
- “UN judge ‘kept slave in UK after deal with Ugandan Deputy High Commissioner’, court hears” – A United Nations judge deceived a young woman into coming to the UK to work as her slave while she studied at the University of Oxford, says BBC News.
- “Farage may not be the greatest danger facing the Tories” – The Liberal Democrats are stealing the Conservatives’ clothing on most issues, says Iain Dale in the Telegraph. It’s hard to tell their MPs apart.
- “The sooner Rachel Reeves is gone, the better” – The last thing the embattled Chancellor needs is a scandal – but that’s precisely what she’s stuck in the middle of, writes Mike Graham in the Telegraph.
- “‘God help us’: the letter that spells out exactly why retirees despise Labour” – In a letter to Telegraph Money, a pensioner describes how the Government’s inheritance tax raid on pensions penalises years of hard work and props up an unsustainable welfare system.
- “Top civil servant takes job with firm to which he gave government contracts” – One of Britain’s most senior civil servants has taken a job with a top consultancy firm for which he approved millions of pounds of government contracts while in office, reports the Mail.
- “Starmer calls for US to act as ‘backstop’ to deter Russian attacks” – Sir Keir Starmer has called for the US to act as a “backstop” to deter Russia from attacking Ukraine again, according to the Mail.
- “British troops won’t help Ukraine” – The sad reality is that Britain is in no position to act as Ukraine’s peacekeeper, says Owen Matthews in the Spectator.
- “Germany to reject Starmer’s plan for troops in Ukraine as Europe splits over peace deal” – Germany is likely to reject Sir Keir’s plans to deploy a European peacekeeping force to Ukraine, throwing the proposals into disarray, reports the Express.
- “Germany is once more a threat to European security” – Berlin’s political elite would seemingly rather see Putin’s armies marching through the Brandenburg Gate than turn their back on Net Zero, writes Daniel Johnson in the Telegraph.
- “Europe’s military weakness means nobody is paying it any attention” – Europe’s military weakness has left it sidelined by Trump, ignored by Putin and unable to defend itself, says Richard Kemp in the Telegraph.
- “Trump’s critics fail to see that Putin is desperate for peace” – Russia’s war economy is a bubble just waiting to burst, and Putin knows it, says Samuel Ramani in the Telegraph.
- “Trump’s confidential plan to put Ukraine in a stranglehold” – Donald Trump’s demand for a $500 billion “payback” from Ukraine goes far beyond US control over the country’s critical minerals, writes Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in the Telegraph.
- “No DOGE-ing the bullet for USAID” – In Taki’s Magazine, Steven Tucker cheers Elon Musk for feeding USAID into the wood chipper.
- “The political benefit of terrifying children” – On Substack, Tom Ed rips into eco-emotional child abuse, where terrified kids fuel political agendas while Greenpeace celebrates their anxiety.
- “Psychiatrist shortage could derail assisted dying Bill” – The Spectator’s Steerpike tears into Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying Bill, exposing a fatal flaw: there aren’t enough psychiatrists to make it happen.
- “British rock star charged in Italy for calling Meloni a ‘fascist’ and ‘Nazi’” – British rocker and Placebo frontman Brian Molko has been charged with defamation after hurling insults at the Italian Prime Minister mid-performance, according to the Metro.
- “No, free speech did not cause the Holocaust” – CBS’s Margaret Brennan has offered the most absurd argument yet for Europe’s illiberal hate-speech laws, says Fraser Myers in Spiked.
- “NHS hospitals set race quotas to win diversity awards” – NHS hospitals have signed up to an anti-racism awards scheme that asks them to meet race quotas, reports the Telegraph.
- “These Europeans are applauding their own downfall” – Founder of NatCon Yoram Hazony laments the tearful reaction of the Chair of the Munich Security Conference to JD Vance‘s speech.
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“These Europeans are applauding their own downfall”
Fragile people celebrating their fragility. Mourning the loss of their ideology, when they should be trying to connect to the awful reality of what they have done.
It’s so pathetic it’s comical.
Except, of course that these are the people who are supposedly in charge of military defence. Their message to the world? We are weak and pathetic and when we find out our hitherto protector (the US) wants us to take responsibility for our own defence, we…start crying.
Does this BETA Male wimp have a name ?
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” The Liberal Democrats are stealing the Conservatives’ clothing on most issues, says Iain Dale in the Telegraph. It’s hard to tell their MPs apart.”
????
Can’t read the article but surely it’s the other way round?
Thank the gods for Twitter and that this is getting so much exposure due to Musk, but now also VP Vance. And these authoritarian buggers had the nerve to get up on stage in Munich and criticize Vance for his speech or refer to the AfD and Trump as a ”threat to democracy” or ”Nazis/extremists”. I’d say raiding people’s homes for social media posts is pretty damn anti-democratic and ”extremist”, but full on hypocrisy is how they roll;
”A “60 Minutes” special on German hate speech laws which featured police raids on citizens across the country has sparked a potential diplomatic fallout between the U.S. and Germany and led to outrage on social media
The 60 Minutes footage, a program from the American news network CBS, prompted Elon Musk to respond to the shocking clips, writing: “Thank the Lord that America has freedom of speech.”
Despite criticism for Germany’s slide towards an authoritarian police state, the police authorities and the interior ministry show no signs of slowing down with raids against individuals posting “hate speech,” “insults,’ or “racist memes.”
Now, German politicians are also chiming in, with a top member of the Free Democrats (FDP), MP Wolfgang Kubicki, stating on X: “Anyone who can still sleep peacefully in the face of such images has not understood the value of freedom of opinion for the democratic community. Freedom of opinion is the basis of freedom in general. These searches undermine confidence in the validity of the Basic Law. We will ensure that the next Bundestag prevents such authoritarian excesses.”
However, the house raids may also result in diplomatic fallout between the U.S. and Germany.
“Insulting someone is not a crime, and criminalizing speech is going to put a real strain on European-US relationships. This is Orwellian, and everyone in Europe and the US must reject this lunacy,” wrote Vice President JD Vance.”
https://rmx.news/article/after-german-house-raids-for-insults-and-racist-memes-shock-the-world-elon-musk-responds-thank-the-lord-that-america-has-freedom-of-speech/
Thanks for that link. Central European old habits die hard.
We are not much better sadly.
We are on a par with Germany tof. Actually probably even worse given Kneel’s concerted effort to kill Tommy Robinson.
https://x.com/trobinsonnewera/status/1891576126151196895?s=48&t=tRZxiZS6XXOVoV2wE5Supw
This is appalling! I’ve been wondering how he and the other patriot political prisoners were doing, but I never imagined that the prison authorities would be back to their old tricks of trying to starve him to death again, like they did last time!
Where on earth are his lawyers in all of this? It makes Nigel Farage’s denunciation of Tommy even worse, knowing all the suffering he has endured for defending British children. And it makes me appreciate Elon Musk, Vice President Vance and the Argentinian President Milei even more, for speaking out boldly in defence of Freedom of Speech for Tommy and all the other British Patriots unjustly imprisoned.
I wish King Charles would do something astonishing by giving them all a royal pardon, showing that he cares about the Working Class, like the US Presidential pardon for the American Patriot prisoners.
Trump’s critics fail to see that Putin is desperate for peace
Two killer facts that blow the demonstrably dotty ‘NATO aggression caused the war’ argument out of the water.
‘And, if you believe the forecasts and the estimates are based on actual work, the real work of people who understand this, who have devoted their whole lives to this, in 15 years, there may be 22 million fewer Russians. I ask you to think about this figure: a seventh of the country’s population. If the current trend continues, the nation’s survival will be in jeopardy’
Putin 2000
Russia’s war is a response to an existential threat: demography
‘Russia’s foreign currency reserves, built over a decade from surplus revenues in the raw materials sector, are nearing exhaustion. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion, the National Welfare Fund (NWF) held approximately $140 billion in liquid assets. Over three years of war, this financial cushion has dwindled to nearly one-third of its former size. As of Dec. 1, liquid assets in the NWF had fallen to $53.8 billion, according to the Russian Finance Ministry………To address its budget shortfall, Russia has also begun selling off gold reserves from the NWF. Between June and early December, 50 tons of gold were sold, leaving 279 tons in reserve.’
Financial preparations for Russia’s war have been taking place for over a decade.
So Putin is not desperate for peace. He is desperate for a ceasefire.
Why will Poland not commit to any peacekeeping force?
They need their Armoured Divisions (you know…the ones we no longer have….) at home to provide that thing that used to be called ‘conventional deterrence’ but is now called:
Common sense
Let me get this straight. According to Putin’s critics over a million Russian young men have died as a result of the fighting. How does losing all those young men help the demography?
Either Putin’s reasoning is faulty or the fatality figures are wrong.
Add to that the fact that so many Ukrainian women and their youngsters, those who would be prime Russian breeding stock and all those kids, have fled abroad and would never return to a new Russian homeland.
Or alternatively, neither is right and we should listen to the reasons Putin has given for his actions which involve doing what the Western”peacemakers want to do – that is, secure their country’s borders from aggressice encroachment.
“In 2039 its population is projected to decline to fewer than 140 million people……For somebody like Putin, who thinks about population not simply in economic but also security terms, this decline translates as an irreversible loss of power.
It is emblematic that Russia’s war in Ukraine has involved the large-scale abduction of children, particularly orphans, who have been forcibly transported to Russia and adopted by Russian parents on the basis of rushed-through legislation. These so-called ‘new Russians’ were central to the way Putin was defining the objectives of his ‘special military operation’.
Ukrainians were seen as ‘the reserve Russians’, destined not only to increase Russia’s population but also to prevent the decline of the country’s Slavic majority. The attempts to counteract the shrinkage of the Russian population by incorporating tens of millions of inhabitants of Ukraine and Belarus recall the ‘mourning wars’ among Native Americans.
Nicholas Eberstadt, who studies Russian demographics at the American Enterprise Institute, says ‘the most successful population programme the Kremlin has had has been annexing neighbouring territories, not increasing the birth rate’.
The biggest single boost to Russia’s population in recent years came when the country annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, adding 2.4 million inhabitants.
Demographic anxiety is by no means the sole explanation for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but it is the most neglected one.
It also reveals the tragic failure of Putin’s war.’
Ivan Krastev, The Spectator June 2025
To put the matter of Russia’s supposed demographic demise into context, it would be better to quote more than just selected sentences from Putin’s Annual Address to the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation on 8th July 2000 (http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/transcripts/21480).
The following excerpts clearly show a leader determined to improve the situation of his country – something we in the West can only envy. Bold type is my emphasis:
“A period is beginning in Russia when the authorities have the moral right to demand that norms established by the state are observed. Perhaps the most serious problem in recent years was the unreasonable level of taxation, or one of the most serious problems. This was discussed a great deal, but nothing was done. The discussion went in a vicious circle, and few believed that the situation could change. Today the first steps have been made. New legislative parameters are established – and thus new rules are established. But work in this area, and we just discussed it with the Prime Minister, is still proceeding with great difficulty.
“Introducing a single rate for income tax, reducing deductions to social off-budget funds will help to bring income out of the shadows. The weakening of the tax burden will make it possible for conscientious entrepreneurs to develop their business confidently in their own country.
“It must be admitted: the dictates of the shadow economy and “grey” schemes, the wave of corruption and mass flow of capital abroad has in many ways been helped by the state itself. It has been helped by the vagueness of rules and by unjustified restrictions.
“For a long time we have been trying to make the choice: to rely on others’ advice, aid and loans, or to develop relying on our own distinctive character, and own efforts. Many countries have also faced this choice.
“If Russia remains weak, we really will have to make the former choice. And it will be the choice of a weak state. It will be the choice of the weak. The only real choice for Russia is the choice of a strong country. A country that is strong and confident of itself. Strong not in defiance of the international community, not against other strong nations, but together with them.
“Now that we are moving forward, it is more important not to remember the past, but to look to the future. We must insure that all of us – entrepreneurs, power structures, all citizens – strongly feel their responsibility to the country. So that strict fulfilment of the law becomes the deliberate choice of all citizens of Russia.
“Policies built on the basis of open and honest relations of the state with society will protect us from repeating past mistakes, and are the basic conditions of a new “social contract”.”
Continuing:
“We have become accustomed to regard Russia as a system of bodies of power, or as an economic organism. But Russia is above all the people who consider this country to be their home. Their prosperity and good standard of living is the government’s main task. It is the task of any government! However, our home is a long way from comfort. It is still hard for many people to raise children, and to ensure a worthy old age for their parents. It is difficult to live.
“We, the citizens of Russia, are becoming fewer and fewer with each passing year. For several years now, the population has dropped by an average of 750,000 people every year. And if we are to believe the predictions, and these predictions are based on real work, the real work of people who understand this and have devoted their entire lives to this, in 15 years, the number of Russian citizens may drop by 22 million.
“I would ask you to think this figure over: it is one seventh of the country’s population. If the current tendency continues, the survival of the nation will be threatened. We really do face the threat of becoming an enfeebled nation. Today the demographic situation is one of the most alarming that the country faces.
“The economic weakness of Russia continues to be another serious problem. The growing gap between leading nations and Russia pushes us towards becoming a third world country. The figures of current economic growth should not be any cause for comfort: we continue to live in conditions of progressing economic lag. I would ask you to pay special attention to this.
“At first glance, the country’s economy does not look bad at the moment. GDP, industrial production, investment and tax collection are growing. However, economic growth, as in the recovery period of 1997, is at risk. Two year ago the apparent prosperity, which was based on large-scale state borrowing, collapsed under a massive financial crisis.
“The current economic figures only look optimistic when compared with earlier ones. I want to stress this, only when compared with earlier ones! But they are very modest in comparison with other countries, which are developing, and much more quickly and more stable than we are. The current growth is only to a small extent connected to the renewal of the economic mechanism. In many ways, it is the result of a favourable external economic situation.
…
“We cannot be happy with this situation. And this is not just because of our national pride, although this is also important. The issue is far more serious and dramatic. Can we hold out as a nation, as a civilization, if our prosperity continually depends on international loans and on the benevolence of leaders of the world economy?
“Russia needs an economic system which is competitive, effective and socially just, which ensures stable political development. A stable economy is the main guarantor of a democratic society, and the very foundation of a strong nation that is respected in the world.”
These are not the words of a warmongering dictator.
Furthermore, some selected sentences:
“Our most important task is to learn to use these tools of state to ensure freedom – freedom of personality, freedom of enterprise, freedom of developing institutions of civil society.”
“But our position is very clear: only a strong, or effective if someone dislikes the word ‘strong’, an effective state and a democratic state is capable of protecting civil, political and economic freedoms, capable of creating conditions for people to lead happy lives and for our country to flourish.”
“At the same time, a strong state is unthinkable without respect for people’s rights and freedom. Only a democratic state can ensure a balance of interests of personality and society, and combine private initiative with national tasks.”
“In a democratic society, a constant link between the people and government is provided by political parties. Thanks to elections, this important tool has today received the greatest possibilities for development. Without parties, it is impossible to carry out the policies of the majority, or protect the position of the minority.”
“Freedom of speech was and remains a firm value of Russian democracy. This is our fundamental position.”
“It is necessary to learn lessons from our experience and admit that the state’s key role in the economy is undoubtedly the protection of economic freedom. Our strategic line is as follows: less administration, and more entrepreneurial freedom – freedom to produce, trade and invest.”
“The third area is freeing entrepreneurs from administrative pressure. The state should gradually stop the practice of excessive interference in business.”
If only the West had such leaders …
‘You might think (Peter the Great) was fighting with Sweden, seizing their lands but he seized nothing; he reclaimed it! It seems it has fallen to us, too, to reclaim and strengthen,” Mr Putin concluded, with a near-smirk….’
June 2022
I think it is disgraceful to isolate some quote Putin made (or anybody makes) and turn it into essentially a justification for war. But you are not alone in this case: there were a flurry of articles in the Guardian, the Daily Telegraph and others, all claiming “Putin compares himself to Peter the Great in Russian territorial push” and the like.
You are welcome to read through a treatise he wrote on the matter here: http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/66181. He explains the long history of Russia and the historical exchange of territories between such past empires as the Austro-Hungarian, the Polish, the Lithuanian and others.
He starts off with the following:
During the recent Direct Line, when I was asked about Russian-Ukrainian relations, I said that Russians and Ukrainians were one people – a single whole. These words were not driven by some short-term considerations or prompted by the current political context. It is what I have said on numerous occasions and what I firmly believe …
First of all, I would like to emphasize that the wall that has emerged in recent years between Russia and Ukraine, between the parts of what is essentially the same historical and spiritual space, to my mind is our great common misfortune and tragedy. These are, first and foremost, the consequences of our own mistakes made at different periods of time. But these are also the result of deliberate efforts by those forces that have always sought to undermine our unity. The formula they apply has been known from time immemorial – divide and rule. There is nothing new here. Hence the attempts to play on the ”national question“ and sow discord among people, the overarching goal being to divide and then to pit the parts of a single people against one another.
He then delves into past centuries at great length and ends his work with the following:
Russia is open to dialogue with Ukraine and ready to discuss the most complex issues. But it is important for us to understand that our partner is defending its national interests but not serving someone else’s, and is not a tool in someone else’s hands to fight against us.
We respect the Ukrainian language and traditions. We respect Ukrainians’ desire to see their country free, safe and prosperous.
I am confident that true sovereignty of Ukraine is possible only in partnership with Russia. Our spiritual, human and civilizational ties formed for centuries and have their origins in the same sources, they have been hardened by common trials, achievements and victories. Our kinship has been transmitted from generation to generation. It is in the hearts and the memory of people living in modern Russia and Ukraine, in the blood ties that unite millions of our families. Together we have always been and will be many times stronger and more successful. For we are one people.
Today, these words may be perceived by some people with hostility. They can be interpreted in many possible ways. Yet, many people will hear me. And I will say one thing – Russia has never been and will never be ”anti-Ukraine“. And what Ukraine will be – it is up to its citizens to decide.
You only have to look at historical maps of Europe to realize that borders were regularly moving all over the place. For example, the whole of Finland was Russian at one time.
And, yes, Putin regrets that the once great and singular country, Russia, was broken up but what is his answer to those events (my emphasis in bold)?
Therefore, modern Ukraine is entirely the product of the Soviet era. We know and remember well that it was shaped – for a significant part – on the lands of historical Russia. To make sure of that, it is enough to look at the boundaries of the lands reunited with the Russian state in the 17th century and the territory of the Ukrainian SSR when it left the Soviet Union.
The Bolsheviks treated the Russian people as inexhaustible material for their social experiments. They dreamt of a world revolution that would wipe out national states. That is why they were so generous in drawing borders and bestowing territorial gifts. It is no longer important what exactly the idea of the Bolshevik leaders who were chopping the country into pieces was. We can disagree about minor details, background and logics behind certain decisions. One fact is crystal clear: Russia was robbed, indeed.
When working on this article, I relied on open-source documents that contain well-known facts rather than on some secret records. The leaders of modern Ukraine and their external ”patrons“ prefer to overlook these facts. They do not miss a chance, however, both inside the country and abroad, to condemn ”the crimes of the Soviet regime,“ listing among them events with which neither the CPSU, nor the USSR, let alone modern Russia, have anything to do. At the same time, the Bolsheviks’ efforts to detach from Russia its historical territories are not considered a crime. And we know why: if they brought about the weakening of Russia, our ill-wishes are happy with that.
Of course, inside the USSR, borders between republics were never seen as state borders; they were nominal within a single country, which, while featuring all the attributes of a federation, was highly centralized – this, again, was secured by the CPSU’s leading role. But in 1991, all those territories, and, which is more important, people, found themselves abroad overnight, taken away, this time indeed, from their historical motherland.
What can be said to this? Things change: countries and communities are no exception. Of course, some part of a people in the process of its development, influenced by a number of reasons and historical circumstances, can become aware of itself as a separate nation at a certain moment. How should we treat that? There is only one answer: with respect!
Do you have proof that the Russians abducted those children. My understanding is that they evacuated from an active front line where they had been abandoned by the Ukrainian authorieies. Some of the children have been returned to their parents in Ukraine where they want them.
‘Accused LastName
Vladimirovich Putin
Accused FirstName
Vladimir
Charges
Allegedly responsible for the war crime of unlawful deportation of population (children) and that of unlawful transfer of population (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation (under articles 8(2)(a)(vii) and 8(2)(b)(viii) of the Rome Statute). The crimes were allegedly committed in Ukrainian occupied territory at least from 24 February 2022. There are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the aforementioned crimes, (i) for having committed the acts directly, jointly with others and/or through others (article 25(3)(a) of the Rome Statute), and (ii) for his failure to exercise control properly over civilian and military subordinates who committed the acts, or allowed for their commission, and who were under his effective authority and control, pursuant to superior responsibility (article 28(b) of the Rome Statute).’
A completely political charge, backed up by how long it took for the ICC to accuse Netanyahu of genocide. Having bowed to political pressure to accuse Putin of some crime by the ICC’s master (USA), it took ICC a considerable time to gather the courage to do its clear duty and accuse Netanyahu of his blatant crimes. Of course, USA refuses to accept the charge of genocide, as shown by Netanyahu recently sitting next to Trump in the White House, and hardly surprising since USA is supplying the weapons Israel uses to kill as many Palestinians as possible.
I have already commented (e.g. on 27th January) on the great work performed by the Russian Children’s Rights Commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, in returning children to their parents either to or from Ukraine:
She went on to say that in most of the cases, a child came to Russia with one of the parents, while the other remained abroad; or a child travelled to Russia with another close relative while his parents remained on the territory of a different country.
“We weigh in each case very carefully, because we fully realize that the future of a child is at stake,” Lvova-Belova said.
In her words, the effort has been conducted upon instructions from Russian President Vladimir Putin who described it as a humanitarian mission “with no place for politics”.
Starmer now has, as Mr Johnson, Mrs Thatcher did before him, a chance to become a great Prime Minister.
We think we know the answer, but then did so many who were wrong about Mrs Thatcher: which one is he?
Not my specialist subject, but three years of mass slaughter later, what seems to be on the table in Ukraine now is similar to what was on the table in April 2022, when the then British Prime MInister flew to Kyiv..?
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2022/09/02/diplomacy-watch-why-did-the-west-stop-a-peace-deal-in-ukraine/
“… Diplomacy Watch: Did Boris Johnson help stop a peace deal in Ukraine?”
Or maybe Johnson merely flew to Kyiv for a chat about the spring weather and flower arranging? The hand of history can move on shoulders in mysterious ways.
‘There were several approaches with ultimatums and I never gave my approval for it,” said Zelenskyy of Russian demands for ending its full-scale invasion.
Johnson had nothing to do with his decision, said Zelenskyy, directly addressing the claims for the first time: “It doesn’t fit with logic; what was he supposed to be talking us out of?”
The Kremlin has used the Johnson story to suggest that Ukraine turned down a peace deal on western orders early in the war. Johnson himself has previously called the claims “Russian propaganda’
The outcome is unlikely to be any different this time.
Putin chose war in 2014, pursued war thereafter and invaded again in 2022.
He has no interest in peace but, maybe, is interested, as after the 2014 invasion, in a pause. That’s it.
Who knows what went on behind the scenes? Am now reading what’s brought to the table for Ukraine now could be far worse than three years ago.
This fandango in Saudi may be the first dance, but it won’t be the last.
You are taking “The Michael” surely ?? Starmer is a Wrong Un ,period !!..
‘A poll in January (1982) gave her the worst rating of any prime minister since the big war. Only 25 percent of those polled expressed satisfaction with her performance.’
I don’t know the PM. He certainly gives every impression of being at best a total no hoper. The real concern is that he has a chance, now, to turn things around.
‘The impact of the Falklands war on Mrs. Thatcher and the course of her government cannot be overstated,’ said The Economist magazine.
‘Had it not occurred, it is probable that pressure from within and outside the government would by late summer have driven Mrs. Thatcher into a major reflationary package or into resignation.’
Pound to a pinch of salt that all he does is use the crisis to raise taxes and do little else.
But then again……
What “chance” is this?
What “crisis”?
‘Crisis? What crisis?’
A crisis of European confidence, for starters.
If we do not re-arm, Article 5 will be tested in due course and NATO will fail that test just as, in 2014, we failed to live up to security assurances we gave to Ukraine in 1994.
The consequences of that failure we now see with stark clarity.
The ‘Long Peace’ in Europe is over.
Well I am not too worried about having to speak Russian any time soon. Much more worried about mass immigration, our economy and civilisation being wrecked, freedom of speech further attacked and evil wokery further embedded in our lives. My bold prediction is that come the next election, European borders will be largely as per today but Europe will be further down the road to its slow suicide, no help needed from Russia.
It is not really a question of having to speak Russian.
Vichy France still spoke their native language.
What is at stake for us is similar to the argument over Brexit. This country must utilise the freedoms it now has as a consequence of Brexit by really taking back control.
Regaining our conventional deterrent will give us a great deal more freedom in international affairs, a stronger hand via security agreements in trade deals. It will also allow us to retain sovereignty over our domestic affairs, something Vichy France did not enjoy.
I share your concerns. I see strong defence forces as the key to the control our borders, the enhancement of international trade and the domestic security, national self confidence that enables us to run our country as we wish.
Vichy France was partly occupied by German armed forces and came about when France was invaded by Germany. I am not concerned that we will be invaded by Russia.
‘The French government, meanwhile, could choose its own seat – and they went for Vichy. In central France, the city was in the unoccupied zone and, as a tourist destination for its thermal baths, it had plenty of empty hotel space to accommodate the government. “On 10 July, the National Assembly met in the casino in Vichy and voted overwhelmingly to grant full powers to Petain to revise the constitution. He could make laws and no longer had to consult the legislature,”
He established a conservative and authoritarian government, officially called the French State, but more commonly known as Vichy France. The term was also used to refer to the parts of France not initially occupied by the Germans.’
The USSR did not occupy the Warsaw Pact nations but 1956 and 1968 demonstrated how much freedom of action those countries really had.
If we disappear behind an Iron Curtain it will be behind one built by the corrupt and decadent European establishment, not by the Russians.
Maybe built by both……
I will still be here in 2030, we can revisit then!
What do you think the answer is. You opinion matters.
Starmer will never, ever, ever be a “great Prime Minister”.
He will go down as a lame duck, a dud, a total failure.
That will be his legacy, ashes, and nothing else.
Great Prime Minister? What are you on about? He’s a socialist. I’m sure he thinks he’s great, but unless he renounces his beliefs he can never be great in my eyes.
Re Mrs Thatcher it’s worth remembering that she set in train the privatisation of large numbers of government owned entities which transformed public finances and enabled with the help of North Sea oil to set off an extended period of economic growth. Starmer and Co have absolutely nothing similar going for them!
In Patrick O’Flynn’s article in the Spectator, in which he complains about Kemi Badenoch mentioning “liberal” or “liberalism” more times than she mentioned “conservative”, Patrick O’Flynn himself mentions the word “liberal” or “liberalism” 11 times, whereas he mentions “conservative” or “conservatism” only 8 times!
Apart from his first sentence, he mentions “liberal” or “liberalism” 8 times in his article before he mentions “conservative”!
Europe’s military weakness means nobody is paying it any attention
Much talk about ‘The peace dividend’ has now been binned.
But few ever talked about the dividends achievable from a powerful conventional deterrent.
Just how stupid is a country, whose historical wealth was built on well protected overseas trade in manufactured goods, regulating and taxing its manufacturing base into extinction, highest electricity prices in Europe and no conventional deterrent?
Just how stupid is a country with a monarchy and its Armed Forces admired across the globe cutting a defence budget including the Royal Yacht when the monarchy and its Armed Forces paid for themselves many times over through trade agreements in every continent backed by security guarantees?
The U.S. is about to get a massive trade deal with Ukraine. China gets access to cheap energy from Russia, raw materials from Africa. Those are all the kind of things this country used to do.
We still could…….but not with a militia, defenceless carriers and without the priceless Royal Yacht……
‘The two blocs must remain comparatively equal, both in strength and in resolution, over the dangerous period that lies immediately ahead. And that is just where I feel the main peril lies today. I am afraid I do not feel at the moment that that balance is being maintained. So far as Russia and her bloc are concerned, whatever we may feel about the ideas that inspire her and her Government—and I do not suppose that any of us likes them very much—I do not think anyone would suggest that their policy is not united, resolute and even dynamic. We have seen during recent months her influence driving forward everywhere.’
House of Lords 1956 (Uk defence budget 7% of GDP)
Explain how “two blocs” is in any way relevant to a multipolar world?
‘A multipolar system doesn’t require three powers of equal size; it just requires that significant power is concentrated in more than two states.’
‘Immediately available in Manchuria are about 300,000 trained troops–veterans of the Chinese civil war.
They are the Fifty-fifth, Fifty-sixth, Fifty-seventh, Sixty-sixth, Sixty-seventh and Fortieth Army Groups.
In addition, there are two cavalry divisions, an artillery division and one army infantry group not yet identified. These are elite units.
In addition, another 300,000 men are available and are believed to be either in Manchuria or North China.’
1950
“No, free speech did not cause the Holocaust” – CBS’s Margaret Brennan has offered the most absurd argument yet for Europe’s illiberal hate-speech laws, says Fraser Myers in Spiked.
Remind us please, media chatterer, who got to tell the Fuhrer what he didn’t want to hear, apart from a succession of Army Chiefs who got summarily sacked (a better fate than Dachau or a summary appointment with piano wire and a meat hook)?
All facilitated by a judiciary in the State’s pocket. Go figure, media luvvie.
Exactly, she has it totally backward. She is either singing from the song sheet as demanded, or she lacks the cognitive capacity to understand.
“British troops won’t help Ukraine”
It’s not about winning or losing and never was
“Ukraine has 109 significant mineral deposits, including those with ores of titanium, lithium and uranium, according to a list compiled by the Kyiv School of Economics, in addition to oil and natural gas fields. Some, though, are in territory already under Russian occupation or close to the front line.”
“Ukraine has deposits of 22 of the 50 materials the U.S. has identified as critical. The country is particularly rich in graphite, lithium, titanium, beryllium and uranium, according to Ukraine’s natural resources and environment ministry.”
As per usual It’s all about land and mineral wealth.
Now that Trump looks likely to bring and end to the military aid bandwagon, Starmer and Europe suddenly wants their share of the pickings, hence, send the troops in to guard our stake!
“Europe’s military weakness means nobody is paying it any attention”
Go on. Do something. Make a new regulation.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/02/17/migrant-hotels-set-to-be-used-for-four-more-years-labour/
Translation:
The current level of imports will continue for at least four years, or until the next election.
If there is another election.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/02/18/british-army-3-uk-division-tanks-armour-artillery/
‘The British Army’s armoured division does not really exist’
Well stuff my old boots!
“British rock star charged in Italy for calling Meloni a ‘fascist’ and ‘Nazi’”
“The country’s criminal code punishes anyone who ‘publicly defames the republic.’ This includes the government, parliament, courts, and the army.” That’s straight out of Stalin’s handbook.
Meloni has sued several people for criticising her in the past, including a journalist and a veteran historian for calling her a Nazi/fascist/whatever.
It seems that Italy could do with a “Free Speech Union of Italy”.
It could also do with a new leader: the True Italian Patriot Matteo Salvini.
“There’s only one way to stop illegal immigration: scrap the asylum system” says Reform MP Rupert Lowe.
He is absolutely right. Former Protestant Queen’s Chaplain Gavin Ashenden once said that the entire asylum system is “Political Deceit”.