Free Republic

.....This former accountant told me about one friend's death and seeing a man's fingers sheared off by shrapnel as he delivered water to families sheltering in basements. 'War is pure hell,' she said through tears, but insisted they had to win. These are words I heard repeatedly, this shift to an acceptance that the war might last a long time and scornful dismissal Ukraine might contemplate anything but recovery of all its lands after suffering such pain. 'A peace deal is never discussed. We've sacrificed too much. Would all the young people have died for a peace deal?' said Maria...

Vladimir Putin built his dictatorship on two core foundations: ruthless control of his nation, whether fleecing its wealth with his pals or silencing dissident voices, and restoration of Russian glory in the wake of the Soviet Union unravelling. So the diminutive despot posed as the modern-day successor to Peter the Great, that 18th Century giant who created the Russian empire, while rehabilitating Joseph Stalin, stepping up repression and strengthening his armed forces. Six of the first 11 decrees he passed after becoming President in 2000 focused on the military – and since then he has almost tripled defence spending to...

All day long Emmanuel Macron skulked behind the majestic walls of his presidential palace while outside, his city – and his country – once again erupted in fury. Not only was the Elysee Palace guarded by hundreds of riot police but also armoured cars bearing machine guns and grenade launchers. Excessive perhaps, but few who spent any time in Paris yesterday would doubt that but for this formidable ring of steel, the mob would have surely tried to storm inside. It was a day of reckoning, a day of insurrection. And this time the revolutionary spirit was catching. There were...