The shift to nuclear-powered submarines has caused some concern in Australia, but despite that all three nations are moving ahead with deepening this vital security alliance.
For all the thunderous blow-back that is undoubtedly coming, Hamas has already got what it wanted, both domestically and strategically.
“Investing in defence is morally the right thing to do, the Defence Secretary declared. “It saves lives.” He criticised those who “from a woke banking perspective” who feel we should disinvest, should take a “dose of reality.”
A victorious Russia would not only be free to continue its extermination of Ukrainian society, but its forces would be on the Polish border, and its leadership convinced that the West lacked the will or ability to defend itself.
The Defence Secretary adds that “we will stand shoulder to shoulder with the Ukrainians.”
s the world’s centre of economic gravity shifts eastwards, it is projected to be generating more than half of global growth by 2050. So we’re building more diverse supply chains, reducing our dependence on hostile powers, and establishing partnerships in cutting-edge technologies.
It was my fourth visit to the country since Russia tried, but failed, to launch a full-scale invasion in February last year. The strength of my commitment to Ukraine grows with each visit.
The objective seems to be to help it survive and to stay in the fight (with perhaps 70,000 dead already), but not for it to win back its lost territories in a timely manner.
“Every man thinks meanly of himself for not having been a soldier, or not having been at sea.” Dr Johnson’s observation has stood the test of time – but is a poor basis for civilian, parliamentary government.
Political instability in America related to the legal cases against Donald Trump is the kind of phenomenon that a nation unfamiliar with democracy can misconstrue as weakness.
It may not be possible for the West to find one, but it’s in our interest to try – no less than to support war-torn, Putin-invaded Ukraine.
British support for Ukraine has so far been unwavering. But how long would it survive the return of Donald Trump?
“This is the problem with our defence spending: there’s no redundancy in the system, and we live in increasingly dangerous times.”
Around three quarters of all transatlantic cables in the northern hemisphere pass through or near its waters – yet Dublin spends just 0.2 per cent of GDP on defence.
Russia’s invasion represented the first open attack on an already-fraying rules-based system. The post-Cold War status quo, about which we became complacent, is gone. Everything has changed.