Jan 10, 2026 Wittgenstein wrote: “One thinks one is tracking the outline of a thing’s nature and one is merely tracing round the frame through which one looks at it.” In this spirit, I try to conjure up a debate between two frames for looking at the Ukraine war. The post below reproduces the main … Continue reading Follow-up to: ‘Ukraine – the delusions of the warmongers’
Category: Journalism
Ukraine – the delusion of the warmongers
Dec 15, 2025 1. European rearmament and threat inflation Lord Robertson was the lead author of Britain’s Strategic Defence Review, published on 2 June 2024. The Review effectively seeks to implant a war-ready mindset across society, insisting that the UK must be “better prepared for high-intensity, protracted war” and that its war-making, and therefore deterrence, … Continue reading Ukraine – the delusion of the warmongers
Ukraine – the delusion of the warmongers
Dec 15, 2025 1. European rearmament and threat inflation Lord Robertson was the lead author of Britain’s Strategic Defence Review, published on 2 June 2024. The Review effectively seeks to implant a war-ready mindset across society, insisting that the UK must be “better prepared for high-intensity, protracted war” and that its war-making, and therefore deterrence, … Continue reading Ukraine – the delusion of the warmongers
Defence Industrial Strategy – Wednesday 10 September 2025
This is a follow-up to my oral question on Ukraine of 9th September, which I have previously circulated. It is a telling example of the ‘war-mongering’ mood of official Britain. For a full view of the debate see link: https://hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2025-09-10/debates/5FF5CC28-E0EF-4D17-8C8C-8999CA2A4154/DefenceIndustrialStrategy Main points of Government Statement on ‘Defence Industrial Strategy’, House of Commons 9 September (Luke … Continue reading Defence Industrial Strategy – Wednesday 10 September 2025
Ukraine in Parliament
September 9th 2025 Lord Skidelsky To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current state of negotiations for ending the war in Ukraine. The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Coaker) (Lab) My Lords, before I answer the Question, let me quickly pay tribute to my noble friend Lord Collins … Continue reading Ukraine in Parliament
The False Premise of European Rearmament
Have European leaders stopped to consider the Orwellian implications of gearing up their nations for perpetual war? On March 5 2025, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen unveiled her Re-Arm Europe Plan, which aims to boost EU defense spending by €800 billion over four years. On June 5, NATO defense ministers agreed to double … Continue reading The False Premise of European Rearmament
“Slava Ukraini!”: how the British media went to war against Russia
The British press has been the most consistently bellicose on the subject of Russia-Ukraine: the same phrases, the same sentiments were on display in every mainstream newspaper and political magazine An accepted difference between a despotism and a democracy is that in the first there is a single opinion while the second allows a variety … Continue reading “Slava Ukraini!”: how the British media went to war against Russia
Should Europe Rearm?
10th of June 2025 Europe is committed to rearmament. Commission President van der Leyden unveiled her ‘ReArm Europe Plan’ which aims to boost EU defence spending by euros 800bn over four years. On 5 June NATO defence ministers agreed to double their members’ annual defence spending from an average of roughly 2.5% of GDP to … Continue reading Should Europe Rearm?
The Nation: Russophobia—an Epidemic Disease?
8th of May 2025 It is right to be suspicious of Putin’s intentions without falling for the idea that he will never stop. In 1836 the liberal philosopher John Stuart Mill claimed that Lord Melbourne’s government was smitten with the “epidemic disease of Russophobia,” an irrational panic that had triggered an unnecessary increase in defense … Continue reading The Nation: Russophobia—an Epidemic Disease?
The Lost Peace?
13th of May 2025 As the Ukrainian war enters its third year, there has been renewed, if rather limp, talk of a ceasefire followed by negotiations. The premise is that since neither side can ‘win’, it makes sense to start making peace. Few now remember that the war almost ended before it got going. On … Continue reading The Lost Peace?
Robert Skidelsky 