Great interview of @samuelhelfont.bsky.social about his new book "The Iraq Wars: A Very Short Introduction" with @oxunipress.bsky.social on the @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social. pocketcasts.com/podcast/new-...

I've decided to massively decouple from US tech. I'm now using Le chat instead of US AI, Proton instead of Gmail, Vivaldi instead of Chrome and Qwant instead of Google. Anyone who's based in Europe the time is now to move towards European digital sovereignty!

My article about Polish Socialist fishing engagement in Senegal during the Cold War has now officially got a volume and issue number, so that means another 50 free copies to download, fill your boots! www.tandfonline.com/eprint/8BBEK...

The only 'good' thing about Trump's Venezuela operation is it gives me for fuel for my US neoimperialism lecture on the history of Empire course I'm preparing to teach

Yeah, think I'll give it a miss, thanks

My new open access article is out now! It continues my research into the Polish People's Republics' engagements with Francophone West Africa during the Cold War. Enjoy! resgestae.uken.krakow.pl/issue/view/802

The article on Polish–Angolan relations is out in the Journal of Cold War History. It explores an asymmetrical relationship shaped by anti-imperialist solidarity and economic pragmatism, but also marked by tensions, disappointments, and corruption. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Great to see on paper mine and Helder's chapter on the Angolan Decolonization process, specially as we draw close to the country's 50 years aniversary.

My new open access article is out now! It continues my research into the Polish People's Republics' engagements with Francophone West Africa during the Cold War. Enjoy! resgestae.uken.krakow.pl/issue/view/802

It's weird how insinuous national history teaching is. When I was at school in the UK I was basically taught that the Spaniards were the baddies and we were the goodies re: any imperial history. Only when preparing a class on Empires in World History did I realise I had imbibed the 'black legend'

Funny how academia works: nothing for ages, then boom, 2 articles in a week. The 2nd began with @rekakrizmanics.bsky.social email. Not my usual period but those intriguing AAN files kept calling… Of course, Jewish threads are in: I wouldn’t be me otherwise 😉. doi.org/10.1177/0888...

Our new book with @benstanley.eu on illiberalism in Poland has arrived with @stanfordpress.bsky.social. We look at the successes and failures of the Law and Justice (PiS) party as a leading example of the evolving global challenges to liberal democracy. www.sup.org/books/politi...

My book is available for pre-order from @nupress.bsky.social. 25% discount with code NUP2025 at nupress.northwestern.edu/978081014884... Only a few more weeks until it comes out!

Good piece but not enough about the main tensions that have led many Poles to become far more anti-Ukrainian since the early months of the war

Tbf I was quite surprised that the anti-Ukrainian part of Polish political discourse was so successfully stifled in the aftermath of the invasion. Put it this way, Polish society is deeply sceptical towards Ukraine for historical reasons (and prejudice has always lurked beneath the surface)

Tbf I was quite surprised that the anti-Ukrainian part of Polish political discourse was so successfully stifled in the aftermath of the invasion. Put it this way, Polish society is deeply sceptical towards Ukraine for historical reasons (and prejudice has always lurked beneath the surface)

To all proof readers. Please do not be overly thorough and intrusive when looking through proofs. My current article the proof reader has gone a bit ballistic.

Finding Poland's boasting of the fact they recognized Palestine a bit of a self own as it happened before the fall of communism when Eastern European countries all supported the Arab side anyway

Russia's over there (thus the obligatory black clouds 😉). At a little village called Piaski (Nowa Karczma) at the Polish Baltic Sea coast very close to the border

Possible highlight of my stay at the Polish coast; an 8 year girl with a t-shirt with the words 'I love saying dumb sh*t' on it. Would be interested to find out the conversation that preceded the purchase

Netanyahu has spent the better part of two decades trying to strong arm the United States into an unprovoked war against Iran and finally found a president stupid enough to do it for him. Unbelievable.

Trump's decision to attack Iran two days after saying he might do so in two weeks and now talking about regime change makes me feel that we're in some completely twisted, insanely sped up version of 2003

People who've done academic research on the Iraq war watching what's going on

Definitely something to read!

I have often been asked about the reasons for the Czech Republic’s uncritical support of Israeli actions. I am happy that I can now refer to the forum published by the Czech Journal of International Relations that features a range of experts on different aspects of the Czech policy on Israel 🧵 1/7

Btw all these people saying Sikorski would have beaten Nawrocki. I'm sorry but wtf? Sikorski has the biggest negative electorate of anyone apart from Tusk in PO. Like the left liberals would have turned out to vote for him. Laughable

My only comment for foreign observers commenting on the Polish Presidential election: the President doesn't matter all that much. It does make the 2027 parliamentary elections super important though

Whoa, this is a strong poll for Trzaskowski. Didn't expect it. The one thing I can expect is a strong mobilisation of the left-liberal voting base for the next round. But still I don't expect this easy a win for Trzaskowski

💯%

You see there are options in Poland but in the second round there isn't, which could go two ways a) turnout drops massively, b) turnout goes up because they absolutely hate the other option

With Braun I agree, not so sure with Mentzen, I think a lot of young people protest voting for him and many members of that group may not turn up in the second round or might swing Trzaskowski as he's more free market than Nawrocki

Some analysis of the first round of the Polish Presidential elections. Lots to chew over. First Trzaskowski's result is very disappointing and you'd have to say that Nawrocki has the momentum going into the second round in 2 weeks /1

Not close at all then

Some analysis of the first round of the Polish Presidential elections. Lots to chew over. First Trzaskowski's result is very disappointing and you'd have to say that Nawrocki has the momentum going into the second round in 2 weeks /1

Vol 34 (2) is now available. Interested in military contractors, France, the EU and Tunisia, customs security, EU delegations and crisis management, Sino-Belgian research cooperation , Poland in Iraq, military social media use or OSINT? Click here: www.tandfonline.com/toc/feus20/3...

34(2) “You forgot Poland?” Polish involvement in the Iraq war and its aftermath through a postcolonial lens by @chrislashhist.bsky.social www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

New from me, an article related to my PhD research on forced displacement at the end of World War Two in Poland. It can be found here, pp. 25-49 (free to download) mysl.lazarski.pl/mysl/issue/v...

Terrible smog in Warsaw today (it's been awful for the last few days in terms of air quality)

Publication time! My article about Polish fishing co-operation in Senegal, 1960-1985 is now out! (first 50 copies free download). www.tandfonline.com/eprint/8BBEK...

The proofs are here! I can't wait to see my article out - a deep-dive into travelogues about Africa, written by women from state socialist Hungary (1960s-1980s). 🗃🗃

Here we go!

Just to say I didn't go into this wanting to write an article about fishing! But while in the archives I found that was the main way Poland engaged with Senegal at the time. I found huge amounts of documents related to the joint fishing convention /1

Publication time! My article about Polish fishing co-operation in Senegal, 1960-1985 is now out! (first 50 copies free download). www.tandfonline.com/eprint/8BBEK...

Fascinating, an epic novel written in the Kashubian language by Aleksander Majkowski. I'd never heard of this author or the book, there's even an English translation (which I've just bought). In Kashubian it's 'Żëce i przigodë Remusa.' en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lif...

Proofs time!

Proofs time!

This guy is right, but he seems to have written it with a very smug smile on his face ecfr.eu/article/lett...

Re: a potential European army, one interesting thing in the Polish context is that Kaczyński (no fan of a federal Europe!) is a fan of a federal European army, he's publicly supported it a number of times (this is from 2017) forsal.pl/artykuly/103...