🔥The 9th Round of Easy Loan, Earn $40 Reward is in progress❗️ ⏰ Promotion Period: January 15th - Feburary 15th, 2025 👉 Register now and check more details at gate.io/campaigns/358

China’s prime minister, Li Keqiang, is about to retire economist.com/china/2023/03/… from The Economist. The Shanghai lockdown was not a howling success but it wasn’t Li Qiang’s fault. He wanted to do it differently but was overruled by Xi. economist.com/china/2023/03/…

Cuba cancels May Day parade because of fuel shortages. Another triumph of socialism. bbc.co.uk/news/world-lat…

US-China Geopolitics: Why Xi Is Ghosting Biden. A trenchant analysis. We must hope Churchill’s dictum, that the US can always be relied on to do the right thing- once it has exhausted all other possibilities, still holds good. foreignpolicy.com/2023/05/17/xi-…

Phillip Schofield: MPs to question ITV bosses over This Morning scandal. Do they not have any real work to do? thetimes.co.uk/article/philli…

theguardian.com/commentisfree/…

I just finished Deterring Armageddon: A Biography of NATO by the amazing Peter Apps. A great read and so timely, coinciding with NATO’s 75th anniversary and at a time when NATO never mattered more.

Tory stalwart Michael Ancram dies after short illness, aged 79 thetimes.com/article/ancram…

Dog-free zones will make the outdoors less racist, study told. Do the Golden Fleece awards still exist? If so this report is a sure-fire winner thetimes.com/uk/society/art…

Chinese Journalist Sentenced to Seven Years on Spy Charges - WSJ. I find it interesting that someone can be convicted of spying for a state that doesn’t have a foreign intelligence service. Just saying…. wsj.com/world/china/ch…

China tells UK to ‘stop creating trouble’ over alleged spy. Not a good week for UFWD ft.com/content/ff5f37…

UK should consider letting IS members return, terror watchdog says. I agree. bbc.com/news/articles/…

UK should consider letting IS members return, terror watchdog says. It is morally derelict of the UK not to take ownership of this problem, especially now there is a chance for Syria to rebuild post-Assad bbc.com/news/articles/…

Met police officers who fail vetting scheme may keep jobs after court ruling. The lunatics really have taken over the asylum thetimes.com/uk/crime/artic…

He was engaged in Track two discussions on cyber stability right up to the end. A remarkable man: wise, erudite and approachable. The world seems an emptier place without him. RIP

Macron condemns ‘cocaine train’ conspiracy spread by Russia. Is this really the best they can do? thetimes.com/uk/politics/ar…

Trump meets ‘terrorist’ Syrian president after ending sanctions. A good move. Not without risk but it gives Syria a chance to stabilise. thetimes.com/world/middle-e…

Why mobilising marines marks a major escalation of Trumpian brinkmanship. In fact this may be less ominous than it seems. The U S Marines receive extensive riot control training to prepare them for guarding U S embassies and other overseas facilities. thetimes.com/us/american-po…

I just received a new passport which I applied for on-line on 3 July using the most idiot-proof website I have yet encountered. Just 3 working days. At a time when UK public services are described as broken, this was heartening. Thank you, HMPO.