Politics (Page 224)

If generals are to succeed in the eyes of their political masters, they need to be given clear guidance as to what success will look like. “Tell me how this ends” General David Petraeus, who commanded the US 101st Airborne Division, had wanted to know before the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Unfortunately for Ukraine, President Putin has outlined clear strategic and political objectives for his senior leadership in Ukraine in a way that the then US president, George W. Bush, never did in Iraq. In his “declaration of war” speech to the nation on February 24, Putin set out the objectives of his “special operation”: his goals were to “strive for the demilitarisation and denazification of Ukraine”. The RussianContinue Reading

www.shutterstock.com Broken arms … I had a badly damaged jaw, strangled … Lizzy* picked me up at her local train station and drove me to the lounge of her favourite hotel, where for more than four hours we sat in a discreet corner while she told me her story. Andy, the person responsible for her broken arms and badly damaged jaw, was her 28-year-old son. When we met in 2018, Andy had recently been given a suspended sentence after pleading guilty to serious assault. He had returned to live with Lizzy following his conviction and “nothing had changed”. The abuse carried on. But despite this Lizzie, now in her late 60s, refused to give up on him. I’m not givingContinue Reading

The closure of the Turkish straits to all warships has drawn attention to the maritime dimension of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. From a tactical and operational perspective, Russian naval forces have already contributed, albeit in a limited way, to the current invasion of Ukraine, notably with missile strikes and amphibious assaults. But from a strategic and political perspective, there are other important maritime elements to the conflict, for both Russia and Nato. Russia is not, and has never been, a maritime power, but it would be a mistake to assume that Russia does not have maritime objectives. Since the late 17th century, securing access to global sea lanes of communication (the primary maritime routes between international ports) has been aContinue Reading

If you’d asked experts just a fortnight ago what the key features of Germany’s approach to foreign and defence policy were, there would have been several strands. Alignment with the west, and of course membership of the EU and Nato would have been a feature. Striving for strong transatlantic links would be another, not least because the country was bruised by its regular, public and bellicose criticism from former president Donald Trump. But a third strand would have been extreme caution, in its dealings with the EU but especially in defence policy matters. Germany has long preferred to avoid committing troops to joint operations or indeed sending weapons into situations of active conflict. It has instead focused on diplomatic andContinue Reading

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has announced an investigation into alleged war crimes being committed in Ukraine. What exactly does that mean and what will be involved? The investigation was requested by the Lithuanian government, with Justice Minister Evelina Dobrovolska stating: “War crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Russian and Belarusian leadership cannot be left unpunished.” The ICC prosecutor Karim Khan has cited the recent expansion of the conflict, along with the findings of an earlier preliminary investigation into the Russian occupation of Crimea, as reasons to begin investigating now. Khan’s office has jurisdiction to investigate any acts of genocide, war crimes or crimes against humanity committed in Ukraine since February 20, 2014. During the investigation stage, the prosecutorContinue Reading

Is Russia now led by someone who would contemplate using nuclear weapons without any great concern? Over Ukraine, Vladimir Putin has dropped some pretty big hints that he is prepared to cross that strategic Rubicon. Just days before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia and its ally Belarus engaged in nuclear exercises. In announcing the invasion itself, Putin pointedly referred to Russia’s standing as “one of the most powerful nuclear powers in the world”. The Russian president seemed to reserve the nuclear option as a response to a “direct attack on our country”. But he warned ominously that those who try “to hinder us” in Ukraine could face “consequences greater than any you have faced in history”. Russia, it was feared,Continue Reading

YouTube has blocked access across Europe to Russia’s state-funded international broadcasters, RT (formerly Russia Today) and Sputnik – including to the UK. The decision follows the announcement on February 27 of expanded sanctions against Russia by the European Commission, which saw RT, Sputnik and their subsidiaries, banned across the EU. These moves come amid increased concern about the potential for these networks to spread harmful disinformation about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Controversy about the content of RT and Sputnik is nothing new. Various UK politicians responded to RT’s reporting on the 2018 poisoning of the Skripals in Salisbury with calls for RT’s license to be rescinded. The calls have intensified this time round. Leader of the opposition Keir Starmer, foreignContinue Reading

What you need to know right now Moscow faced increasing isolation on Tuesday as Russian president Vladimir Putin showed no sign of stopping an invasion of Ukraine, where fierce fighting and Russian bombardment have killed dozens and sparked a refugee crisis. A Russian armoured column bore down on Kyiv on Tuesday and invasion forces fired lethal rocket barrages into the centre of the country’s second-largest city, on the sixth day of Russia’s assault. A senior US defence official said Russia’s move on Kyiv has seemingly stalled on Tuesday afternoon, as its forces face logistics challenges. Russia said it was placing temporary curbs on foreigner investors seeking to exit Russian assets, as ripple effects of sanctions on Russia were making themselvesContinue Reading