Keir Starmer joins a growing list of leaders posing for the same photo in front of the same backdrop with Xi Jinping as he pitches a comparatively predictable form of authoritarianism. The US's self-inflicted loss is China's gain. In @newstatesman1913.bsky.social www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

The art of the "framework of a future deal": www.newstatesman.com/internationa... (for @newstatesman1913.bsky.social)

Is Trump backing down over Greenland? In @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Mark Carney's new world order and the turn to China in @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: China is not a benign power, but it is now a more predictable belligerent than the US under Trump: www.newstatesman.com/world/americ...

Europe's reckoning over Greenland has arrived. Three brief points: -it is not clear Trump has legal authority to impose these tariffs -he does not have the authority to buy or annex territory w/o congress -Europe has cards too, and Trump does back down. www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Denmark and its allies are sending small, but symbolic numbers of troops to Greenland for an exercise fittingly named Operation Arctic Endurance, as they seek to outlast Trump's obsession with the territory and deter him from taking an irreversible step. www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Sweden announcing contingent on way to Greenland at DK's request. This is a smart and sadly necessary response. Nato allies can show they take Trump's security concerns seriously while complicating the calculus for a president who does not like to do hard things: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Denmark is rushing military reinforcements to Greenland. The UK and Germany are talking about sending troops. This is now where we are. In @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

“We would never go to war against the Americans, but we are in Greenland and if US soldiers move in and try to remove our soldiers and our police, then we are at war"- Rasmus Jarlov, chair of Danish parliament's defence committee in @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Donald Trump claims Russian and Chinese ships are "all over" Greenland. An interview with Polar War author Kenneth R. Rosen in @newstatesman1913.bsky.social on the reality: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

The enduring mystery is why Trump has decided he has to "get" Greenland to achieve his aims. Denmark was happy for the US to increase its presence & Greenlanders were open to US investment, as long as they were not part of the sale @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Greenland, Denmark, and the rest of Europe confront the Trump administration's "iron laws of the world". For @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

"In acting alone, we have alienated our democratic allies and dealt another blow to the already beleaguered rules-based international system that has served us so well for the last 80 years." - @mcfaulmike.bsky.social in @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

For the third time in 13 months, Vladimir Putin has proved unable or unwilling to intervene to prop up a supposed strategic partner during a moment of crisis. Putin's calculus on Venezuela and Ukraine in @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

‘What is the difference, Putin’s supporters will ask, between Trump’s actions and Russia intervening to remove an unfriendly government within its own sphere of influence?’ @katiestallard.bsky.social on the wider precedent set for Moscow and Beijing www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Maduro was meeting with China's special envoy in Caracas in the hours before the US attack. Welcome to the era of rogue superpowers. For @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

The shameful show trial of Jimmy Lai and how China has broken its treaty commitments to the UK over the fate of Hong Kong, with insights from @jwassers.bsky.social, for @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

The writing is on the wall for the US approach to Ukraine and Europe. Trump has made his priorities clear. It is long since time for European leaders to take him at his word. In @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/world/europe...

I wrote about the many devils in the details of the new US-Russian "peace plan" for Ukraine, which does, yes, include some concessions for Russia, but much bigger and more dangerous demands from Ukraine. In @newstatesman1913.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

So, is the US seriously preparing to bomb Venezuela, or is this all part of an elaborate pressure campaign intended to force the country’s strongman ruler, Nicolás Maduro, from power? The answer may well be: both. For @newstatesman1913.bsky.social www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

In his meeting with Xi, Trump has largely succeeded in tamping down a fire that he started. That hardly qualifies as a triumph of dealmaking or statesmanship. www.newstatesman.com/international-politics/2025/10/how-xi-jinping-bullied-donald-trump

We now know precisely why UK prosecutors dropped their case against two British men accused of spying for China: www.newstatesman.com/world/asia/c...

Of course China is a threat The government’s handling of the China spy case has been a “masterclass in ineptitude”. Keir Starmer must stand up to the superpower. 🌎 @katiestallard.bsky.social

If you announce it, a deal will come. Donald Trump's strategy for "eternal peace" in the Middle East in @newstatesman.bsky.social: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Kamala Harris still can't answer a question: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Modern authoritarianism is not all jack boots in the streets...The more pernicious danger is the illusion that if only you keep your head down and don’t attract the ire of those in power, then you, and your family, and your business interests, will be left alone. www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

The right now has its martyr. The left must unite in condemning his killer. The shooting of Charlie Kirk and the dangerous days now ahead. www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

"Here we go!" Trump on the Russian drones shot down over Poland, whatever that means. www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Are Europeans now prepared to put their own troops on the ground and risk war with Russia to provide security guarantees for Ukraine, because they haven't been so far. And the better way to ensure Ukraine's security. In @newstatesman.com: www.newstatesman.com/world/europe...

It was a good week for Kim Jong-un. Thanks @katiestallard.bsky.social for speaking with me about Kim’s successful appearance in Beijing. theworld.org/segments/202...

Autocrats of the world, unite! Xi's big parade in Beijing was both a show of strength, and not quite everything it seemed. In @newstatesman.com: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Given that Trump has, so far, shown no sign of following through on his threats, what is to stop Russia fighting on, while talking about talking & pushing for a peace deal next year, when Trump will likely be even more desperate for a win ahead of the mid-terms? www.newstatesman.com/world/europe...

The bad news for Ukraine is that Donald Trump appears to have only the most cursory grasp of the complexities of the existential war it is currently fighting, and a strong proclivity to adopt the views of the person he spoke to last. This is also the good news. www.newstatesman.com/world/europe...

What to expect from Trump's half-baked summit in Alaska with Putin, and how Ukraine and Europe still have agency.

“The easy conclusion is to say that Kim Jong Un is once again vindicated in his pursuit of nuclear weapons because if Iran had nuclear weapons, like he did, they would not have gotten bombed,” says @sydseiler.bsky.social in an interview with @katiestallard.bsky.social for @newstatesman.com.

North Korea’s guide to going nuclear 🌎 @katiestallard.bsky.social on how Kim Jong Un fortified his impoverished state.

48 hours after the US bombed Iran, Kim strolled through his new water park, shaking hands with the Russian ambassador. The North Korean guide to going nuclear in @newstatesman.com with @edwardhowell.bsky.social, @annafifield.bsky.social, @csis.org's Sydney Seiler & Fyodor Tertitskiy: t.co/jxECtX8VRh

Lovely to @katiestallard.bsky.social review of The Milk Tea Alliance (a short work on youth activism featuring profiles she describes as "concise, engaging, and ultimately inspiring") appear in @newstatesman.com on the eve of the book's 24 July UK release date www.newstatesman.com/culture/book...

Donald Trump appears, belatedly, to be reaching the conclusion that Vladimir Putin cannot be entirely trusted. So he's... giving him another 50 days to mend his ways. www.newstatesman.com/world/europe...

Happy to share this review of @josephtorigian.bsky.social's remarkable new biography of Xi Zhongxun, which aside from the insights it offers into his famous son is also a fascinating study in the nature of power and the frailties of those who wield it. (And no, I did not come up with the headline.)

‘military action… has only modestly eroded Iran’s capability to build the bomb, while increasing its incentives to do so.’ Quote from a nuclear policy expert in this great @katiestallard.bsky.social piece www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

“I am worried about a sneak-out scenario, where the Iranians lick their wounds after this devastating war, but quietly continue their work. It’s a very mountainous country [with] a lot of underground facilities." @nktpnd.bsky.social in @newstatesman.com: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

"It always seemed to me that [diplomacy] was a much more promising avenue than military action, which has only modestly eroded Iran’s capability to build the bomb, while increasing its incentives to do so.” @nuclear-jim.bsky.social @newstatesman.com on Iran: www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

The hunt for Iran's missing uranium and the future of the country's nuclear program, with expertise from @nuclear-jim.bsky.social, Kelsey Davenport, and @nktpnd.bsky.social in @newstatesman.com www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Enjoyed speaking with @katiestallard.bsky.social at @newstatesman.com about my new book: “The proliferation toothpaste does not go back in the tube” www.newstatesman.com/podcasts/ins...

Why am I so unimpressed by these strikes? Israel and the US have failed to target significant elements of Iran's nuclear materials and production infrastructure. RISING LION and MIDNIGHT HAMMER are tactically brilliant, but may turn out to be strategic failures. 🧵 1/17

Hours after US officials insisted this was not the start of a new war for regime change, Trump began musing about the prospect of regime change on social media. With Iran's FM meeting Putin today, I wrote about the known unknowns in Tehran's response & the North Korea model: tinyurl.com/h29dhetc

I wrote about Trump's big birthday military parade (and how it compared to the other military parades I covered in Moscow & Beijing), his dictatorial cosplay, and the dangerous lessons he has learned from the world's strongmen. www.newstatesman.com/internationa...

Happy publication day to @jwassers.bsky.social and his brilliant new book, The Milk Tea Alliance. Ever more relevant and resonant in our current times...

"It is ironic that Putin has succeeded in creating a genuine threat to Russian territory where none existed at the start of this war." www.newstatesman.com/world/europe...