Free Republic

Sir Keir Starmer must push back against Donald Trump’s “lies” about Ukraine when they meet in Washington next week, former Tory defence ministers have said. The US president is facing a backlash after claiming Ukraine initiated the war with Russia, despite the fact it was Vladimir Putin’s nation that launched a full-scale invasion three years ago. Next week, Sir Keir will hold his first face-to-face talks with Mr Trump since he entered the White House in a meeting set to be dominated by the shape of any potential peace deal. Sir Gavin Williamson, the Tory MP who was defence secretary...

Donald Trump has signed an executive order that could make him the most powerful president in history by using an obscure Constitutional theory to enact his vision of presidential authority. The new order seeks to 'reign in independent agencies' by seizing various departments that normally act in accordance with Congress and bring them under control of the executive branch in the White House. The order also states that the president and attorney general will interpret the law, leaving Trump free from Congressional and judicial oversight. Observers suggest that Trump is using unitary executive theory which grants the president a wide...

Russia railed against Sir Keir Starmer's plans for a peace-keeping force involving British troops in Ukraine, saying it would be a 'step towards escalation'. Moscow issued the chilling warning after the Prime Minister revealed he was 'ready and willing' to deploy forces to help police any ceasefire deal. The development came after the first talks aimed at ending the war got under way yesterday between the US and Russia in Saudi Arabia. Michael Waltz, Donald Trump's National Security Adviser, appeared to back Sir Keir's plan, saying his pledge to look at sending UK troops was 'a good thing'. But within...

Along Ukraine's frontline, the war rages on. But global attention spanned thousands of miles away today, as representatives from Russia and the US met in Saudi Arabia to discuss an end to the conflict. Uninvited to those talks, and in Turkey instead, was Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky. He made it known he won't accept a deal made about Ukraine without Ukraine's involvement, and that he wouldn't recognise parts of Ukraine occupied by Russia. Speaking after the meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called the talks "useful", but said any type of peacekeeping forces in Ukraine would be "completely unacceptable". Marco...

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer wants a guarantee of U.S. military intervention in Ukraine in a worst-case scenario to ensure any future peace deal there goes ahead. Speaking in Paris after an emergency summit with European leaders on Monday, Starmer said U.S. backing is the “only way to effectively deter Russia from attacking Ukraine again.” And he said the future of Ukraine is not the only thing at stake. “It is an existential question for Europe as a whole, and therefore vital for Britain’s national interests,” he added. “This is a once in a generation moment for the collective...

There is no longer any doubt that Europe and America are parting ways. The death of the transatlantic relationship was foretold many times, but at the Munich Security Conference this weekend, it finally ended. The great American-European divorce has played out in three areas — Ukraine, free speech, and trade. Last week, Donald Trump blindsided the Europeans with his announcement of peace talks with Vladimir Putin. (He said he would do this during his election campaign, but Europe’s leaders were clearly not paying attention.) Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine, told the Europeans on Saturday that they will not...

The Royal Navy, once the mightiest navy in the world, now has the bizarre situation of having more admirals than warships? How did this happen, and should we be concerned by it?

Sir Keir Starmer is poised to join European Union leaders at an emergency summit on Monday, after the United States urged them to come up with “ideas” or be frozen out of talks over peace plans for Ukraine.

Keir Starmer has said he is prepared to put British troops on the ground in Ukraine if there is a deal to end the war with Russia, acknowledging it could put troops “in harm’s way” if Vladimir Putin launches another attack. It is understood to be the first time the prime minister has explicitly stated he is considering deploying British peacekeepers to Ukraine. The comments came just before emergency talks with European leaders in Paris on Monday. The leaders will aim to devise a strategy in response to Donald Trump’s push for a deal with the Russian president and to...

More than half of Britons back sending UK troops to Ukraine, a poll found. Nearly six in ten (58 per cent) told the YouGov survey that they either 'strongly' support or 'somewhat' back UK troops being deployed in the event of a ceasefire deal. Barely a fifth said they opposed such a move. The poll found a variation between voters, however. While 67 per cent of Tory voters said they backed deploying UK troops, just 44 per cent of Reform UK supporters did. Labour supporters closely resembled Tory voters, with 66 per cent backing the move, while 70 per cent...