Amidst all the sound and fury prompted by Trump on both sides of the Atlantic, the highly inconvenient truth is that he is correct. In the defence context, too many European countries have been delinquent for decades.
Despite European NATO’s technological superiority over Russia, we will struggle to defend against a Russian attack: only Finland and Poland have land equipment on the necessary scale.
Sombre warnings from politicians and generals are entirely at odds with decades of what can be fairly described as a deeply unserious approach to defence.
Rishi Sunak should build on the recent progress in Northern Ireland to impress upon Dublin the urgency of stepping up our efforts to counter Russian, Chinese, and Iranian threats to our joint security.
According to YouGov, the Party commands a plurality of voters only among the over 70s. As far as voting intention is concerned, the Conservative Party is literally dying on its feet.
Estonia’s government has, in a White Paper that rightly calls for Russia’s defeat, estimated it could be done at a cost merely of 0.25 per cent of Western GDP over four years.
The fundamentals of our democracy are strong: voters continue to take pride in their community, to respect their neighbours, and to want Britain to be an outgoing, self-confident country that plays its part on the world stage.
If you are an Atlanticist, a supporter of NATO, an ally of Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression, it would be truly extraordinary to support him over Biden.
As we vote by state, the national polling averages mean little. Drilling down to the swing states, it is crystal clear that if the election were held today, the former President would win a clear victory.
When I raised these issues in the summer of last year, I was shouted down. But MPs should be encouraged to show political curiosity, share their passion and advance and test current thinking.
Now, through Orbán and Trump, the Kremlin is cashing in its chips. Unable to defeat Western-supported Ukraine on the battlefield, it’s playing Western politics to cut off its supply of money and weapons.
A world in which Russian warmongering prevailed over British and American promises would be one where the advantage had passed decisively to the autocracies.
In comparison to the Rwanda scheme, the arguments for such cards are stronger and the arguments against it weaker.
In domestic policy, we are headed for the real deal. Trump’s campaign staff have been briefing for months that, this time, deep state officials will not stand in their way.
According to government figures, 32 per cent of businesses and 24 per cent of charities have experienced breaches or attacks in the past 12 months.