Mar 03, 2026 Given the premise, it becomes easy to treat disparate events as mutually reinforcing confirmation of it, often yielding elaborate conspiracy theories. The standard Russophobe narrative runs roughly as follows: Russia invaded Georgia in 2008. Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. The United Kingdom is fighting for the freedom … Continue reading Paranoid Corner (3)
Tag: War
Four Years Later
Feb 26, 2026 Four years after the so-called full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it is very hard to disentangle oneself from all clichés, lies, and reflexes in which the war is entangled. I have never lived through a ‘full-scale war’, nor served as a soldier in any war, big or small, so perhaps it was always … Continue reading Four Years Later
Follow-up to the follow-up
Jan 13, 2026 The following passages from the British Parliamentary debates on Ukraine on 7th and 11 January can be read as a kind of appendix to the debate between Critic and myself posted on 10th January. They reveal very clearly the lens through which official Britain sees the world. In his statement of 7th … Continue reading Follow-up to the follow-up
Follow-up to: ‘Ukraine – the delusions of the warmongers’
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’
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
Brussels Speech: Should Europe rearm?
November 28th, 2025 My speech is in four parts. The first looks at the doctrine of self-defence. Second, I question the arguments currently being advanced for European rearmament. Third, I outline the two narratives which frame the current conflict between the political West and Russia. Finally, I recall President Eisenhower’s warning against the military-industrial complex. … Continue reading Brussels Speech: Should Europe rearm?
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
My speech in the House of Lords on Ukraine – 31st of October
Note: I was allowed 5 minutes My Lords, I do not know whether it is a punishment or a privilege to be put last in the list of Back-Bench speakers, as I invariably am when it comes to a debate on Ukraine. The noble Lord, Lord Coaker, was powerful and eloquent in opening, and it … Continue reading My speech in the House of Lords on Ukraine – 31st of October
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
Strategic Defence Review Debate – House of Lords
22nd of July, 2025 Note: I post below my speech of 18 July in the House of Lords on Britain’s Strategic Defence Review. (The section in brackets was left out due to pressure of time. Backbenchers were allowed 5 minutes each). I was the only one of 39 speakers to have any substantial criticisms of the … Continue reading Strategic Defence Review Debate – House of Lords