Free Republic

DEFENCE Secretary Sir Michael Fallon ­sensationally resigned after ­admitting that he has been a sex pest. The Cabinet minister, 65, told PM Theresa May his past behaviour had “fallen below the high standards” he asked of troops he presided over.

Russia could inflict the tactics it is accused of using to destabilize Ukraine on Baltic members of NATO, British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon warned in comments to British newspapers on Wednesday. He said that NATO must be prepared for Russian aggression in any form, and warned of a “real and present danger” to Baltic members of NATO.

David Cameron has been warned that Britain cannot afford any more defense cuts in the wake of the growing threat posed by Vladimir Putin—despite claiming the UK military is strong enough to fend off Russian aggression. The Conservative chair of the Defense Select Committee, Rory Stewart, said Mr. Putin was watching to see if Britain was going soft on defense. He said Britain’s military could not stand another round of defense cuts after the election. Mr. Stewart’s stark warning comes after RAF fighters were scrambled to escort two Russian bombers in international airspace off the coast of Cornwall yesterday. A...

President Barack Obama marked a milestone Sunday on the way to one of the most important, controversial, and riskiest promises of his presidency: winding down the American-led coalition's combat role in Afghanistan in preparation for ending the long war there next year. American and British combat operations formally came to an end in Helmand Province, one of the bloodiest theaters in the U.S.-led war against the Taliban and a primary focus of Obama's 2010 surge of tens of thousands of American reinforcements charged with beating back the revitalized insurgency. But there were no White House statements issued Sunday to commemorate...

Michael Fallon, the defence secretary, has claimed British towns are being “swamped” by immigrants and their residents are “under siege”, in an escalation of the emotive language being used by Tory ministers calling for a renegotiation of the UK’s relationship with Europe. In terms reminiscent of Margaret Thatcher in the 1970s, he said on Sunday that in some areas of the UK, large numbers of migrant workers and foreign people claiming benefits should be subject to some form of restraint – or risk dominating the local population. “In some areas of the UK, down the east coast, towns do feel...