Only one possible viewing option this evening!

We welcomed our Royal Patron HM The King to @RUSI_org to mark 50 years that HRH The Duke of Kent has been our President. RUSI was the first think tank in the world founded by the first Duke of Wellington in 1831 - and now chaired by the current Duke! An old Institute doing cutting edge research.

An important mission today in advance of Remembrance Day to lay a wreath at the British Normandy Memorial which my five year old grandson made all on his own.

Last week, the @houseoflords.parliament.uk European Affairs Committee was honoured to host a joint meeting with the European Affairs Committee from the French Senate. Following the meeting the respective chairs, @lordrickettsp.bsky.social and Senator Jean-François Rapin, co-signed a Joint Statement

Bravo to North Herts Museum for a lovely small show on William Ratcliffe, a Letchworth Gdn City artist who became a first rate Camden Town painter under the influence of his neighbour Harold Gilman. His quiet interiors are ravishing but he sold few, and survived on porridge or boiled onions! 1/2

A powerful debate today showing the strong bipartisan support for Ukraine - because it’s in the UK’s national interest. I made two main points. First, a ceasefire will only come when Putin concludes that pressure on Russia is jeopardising his hold on power. 1/6 www.parliament.uk/business/new...

That’s the conundrum Matt Collins faced. He couldn’t put words into the mouth of the previous government which they hadn’t used. For all the rhetoric now, their stated policy (IR 2023) was that China was an ‘epoch-defining challenge’. Collins instead assessed the threat of specific Chinese actions.

My thoughts on the China spy case are in the first 10 minutes here. I found the Matt Collins witness statements totally professional and a powerful basis for a prosecution. There was no sign of the Gov’t trying to collapse the case, or any real change in China policy. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

If you are settling down with a coffee at 1100, have a listen to The Westminster Hour on BBC Radio 4 where the FT’s George Parker, Bns Helena Kennedy and I discuss the ins and outs of the disappearing China spy case.

It’s striking what a professional job Matt Collins did in these witness statements. The first describes in forensic detail the threat from Chinese intelligence operations and how this was ‘prejudicial to the safety or interests of the state’. 1/2 www.gov.uk/government/p...

It’s time to put the spotlight back on Russia’s relentless war of attrition against #Ukraine. The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada spoke powerfully to UK parliamentarians today about the threat Russia poses to all European states. Next to him, to reinforce the message, was a Shahed 136 killer drone.

A day of joy and hope. But unless the international community moves very fast in getting a security presence on the ground in Gaza, the situation could descend into gangland violence: the last thing the people of Gaza need. Welcome that the summit in Egypt happens today as well x.com/skynews/stat...

Couldn’t resist this one!

Unusually I disagree with this @TheEconomist leader on Gaza. Trump’s plan is NOT a ‘radically different vision from the moribund approach under Oslo’. Indeed one of the most striking things about the 20 points is that they move the US towards the classic Oslo vision of the end-state 1/3

The hugely welcome ceasefire/hostage release deal finally happened when Trump used the full weight of US power to mobilise Arab pressure on Hamas and get Netanyahu over the line. But it will take sustained engagement by Trump personally (not his strong point) to avoid the deal unravelling 1/2

Good to talk to Amol Rajan on the Today Programme earlier about the Hamas statement. It’s a remarkably astute move, accepting Israel’s key demand for hostage release, thereby earning an approving response from Trump and throwing all the pressure back on Netanyahu. Could still go wrong. But 1/6

This new Humanities Centre looks like a wonderful new arrival in Oxford. But I wish William Hague had found room, in a long interview, to pay tribute to the former Chancellor Chris Patten, whose fundraising achievement this was. www.thetimes.com/culture/art/...

I’m personally glad the Chancellor has discovered the benefits of an EU youth experience scheme. A pity that it wasn’t in the manifesto, that the Govt rebuffed EU proposals, and were lukewarm about it at the 19 May summit. We c’d have been much closer to a deal now if it had been made a UK priority.

The PM is right to recognise the state of Palestine. The two state solution has been the policy of successive Governments. Making this statement won’t of course stop the killing in Gaza or bring the hostages home. Only a ceasefire will do that. However this is significant www.gov.uk/government/s...

If you missed Catriona’s brilliant preview of the show on the Today programme yesterday have a listen on BBC Sounds!

Watching Spielberg’s The Post again, striking how relevant Justice Black’s opinion in the Washington Post case 1971 still is ‘The Founding Fathers gave the free press the protection it must have to fulfill its essential role in our democracy. The press was to serve the governed, not the governors’.

Gearing up for BBCr4 Today Programme on where the State Visit leaves us on Ukraine and Israel/Gaza. How far did the rosy glow of Royal hospitality affect discussions on the tough issues? Give us a listen at 0712

How far can the goodwill generated on Day 1 of the State Visit, spent far from the madding crowd in the glow of Royal hospitality, be translated on Day 2 into economic deals of benefit to UK and progress on international crises? The first looks more likely than the second. 1/7

If you are curious to know what the vetting process amounts to, and the differences between appointing a political figure as opposed to a career diplomat, have a listen to the first five minutes here, before coming on to Adam Boulton on the politics of the case. open.spotify.com/episode/1uvx...

Some very good commentary here. I was particularly struck by Georgina Wright’s point that France is losing influence in Europe because of its endless domestic turmoil. www.gmfus.org/news/frances...

Bayrou is right about the dismal state of French public finances. But being right may not be enough for his government’s survival. Why France’s PM called an unexpected confidence vote about the country’s debt France is in big trouble, again economist.com/europe/2025/... from @economist.com

Yes this is an excellent insight.

A memory for #VJDay80 of two brothers whose fates were bound up with the Burma war. They were born into an Indian Army family: their father Leslie retired as Col of the 2nd Btn XIX Hyderabad Regiment in 1937. The boys, Desmond and Maurice, were formatted for the same career. 1/11

I set out some thoughts last night on BBCR4 on the Ukraine day on the White House. In short it was a good day for European diplomacy. First, a well-schooled Zelensky handled his Ordeal by Oval Office deftly, with plenty of thanks and flattery and earning warm if vague words of support from Trump 1/7

At one point during the 1999 Kosovo crisis, Tony Blair invited Chirac and Schroeder for dinner in No10. Leaders from all round Europe started ringing up to say they were coming too. It became known in No 10 as the ‘bring a bottle’ summit.

My thoughts on that Alaska summit from 15mins in here. In short, a clear win for Putin. With an ICC indictment for war crimes hanging over him, shunned by W nations for 3.5 years, he was greeted as a co-equal world leader by Trump without giving anything in return. 1/4 www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Your source is impeccable! And to be fair to Churchill he maintained his opposition to conceding Stalin a free hand in Poland all the way to the point where was ousted from office during Potsdam.

With all the talk of Yalta Mk 2 in the run-up to the Trump-Putin summit, it’s worth noting one big difference: in Jan 45, Soviet troops had occupied almost all of pre-war Poland. In terms of the future of Poland, US/UK faced a fait accompli rather than a negotiation. Putin occupies 20% of Ukraine.

It’s going to be a wonderful exhibition, opening Sept 26, not to be missed!

My thoughts here (15 mins in) on the latest Israeli escalation It’s a disaster, which will bring further deaths and misery. It shows Bibi has no plan to end the war. The idea he can at some point just decide to hand the running of Gaza to an Arab state is a fantasy. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

I can help! The Home Sec has written to the Commons Home Affairs Cttee (and to me in the same terms). The HAC have published the text here👇You will see that the Home Sec has relied on Section 22(1) of CRAG allowing ratification in exceptional circs. 1/2 committees.parliament.uk/publications...

Did you spot a very odd word which has crept in? Article 17.1 (a) on the tasks of the Joint Committee says these will include ‘to monitor the application of this agreement in particular its tantamount objective of balance’. Meaningless. 1/2

With all these Franco-British discussions about state-building in the Near East, now’s the time to read (or re-read) this by @jamesbarr.bsky.social. Not only a brilliant book about the tangled history of the region, but one if the best non-fiction titles. dauntbooks.co.uk/shop/books/a...

If you are up and about early I will be on the Today Programme on BBCR4 at 7.10 on what more the Government should do on the desperate crisis in Gaza and whether now is the time to recognise Palestine.

My thoughts in the FT on the agreements with France last week and this week’s Treaty with Germany. The Brexit shadow has lifted from UK bilateral relations in Europe. 🇬🇧🇫🇷🇩🇪are now clearly in the lead in weaning Europe off over-dependence on the US. It will be a long haul. www.ft.com/content/fb29...

We recently signed a five year partnership agreement between the Franco-British Council and the Government of Jersey. As a result, we were glad to welcome three Jersey professionals on our Young Leaders programme. As they found, this can lead to interesting encounters! www.bbc.com/news/article...

This has been the most productive 🇬🇧🇫🇷 Summit since Lancaster House 2010. With next week’s 🇬🇧🇩🇪Summit and Defence Treaty, it marks the final laying of the Brexit ghost, at least in terms of bilateral links with EU countries. The combination of Putin and Trump has made this essential. A 🧵

Thrilled to appointed UK Special Envoy for the loan of the Bayeux Tapestry to the British Museum, and of treasures from their collection to France. The first time this extraordinary artwork has been back to Britain since it was embroidered here almost 1,000 years ago! / www.gov.uk/government/n...

Good to be in Copenhagen for the first meeting of Chairs of European Affairs Committees under the Danish EU Presidency @eu2025dk. Meeting in the Folketing carries strong echoes of Borgen, though our proceedings may not be quite so dramatic or glamorous!

The Lords European Affairs Committee is taking evidence today from Ministers Nick Thomas-Symonds and Stephen Doughty on the EU/UK relationship following the 19 May summit. This will wrap up our Inquiry into what used to be called the EU-UK reset. How far and fast can this go? Watch live from 3.30.

There’s some exceptional journalism in the FT today. In this long read from Tim Garton Ash, I particularly liked the insight that the structural challenge for Europe is that the policies it needs are increasingly European but the politics are national. And…

Thanks to Ed Stourton for giving me me eight precious minutes for a wide-ranging interview on the US bombing of Iran starting at around 1320 here. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Thanks Francois. It’s not going to be easy for UK/Fr/Ge having stood aside from the Iran attacks (rightly) and wanting to avoid an open breach with Trump either on that or defence spending. If Iran retaliates very likely Trump won’t come.