Feb 24, 2025 08:15 PM
(This post was last modified: Feb 24, 2025 09:52 PM by C C.)
PM's chilling 'Europe will be next' message - and says Trump changed things
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/b...e-34736953
EXCERPT: . . . Later this week, Mr Starmer will jet to Washington for his first face-to-face talks with Donald Trump since the Republican leader returned to the Oval Office. The PM told European leaders and Zelensky that Mr Trump had "changed the global conversation" around the ongoing war.
He said: "It has created an opportunity. Now we must get the fundamentals right. If we want peace to endure, Ukraine must have a seat at the table, and any settlement must be based on a sovereign Ukraine backed up with strong security guarantees.
"The UK is ready and willing to support this with troops on the ground, with other Europeans and with the right conditions in place, and ultimately, a US backstop will be vital to deter Russia from launching another invasion in just a few years' time. So we will do everything we can to get the best outcome for Ukraine and for us all."
But Mr Starmer also expressed solidarity with Kyiv after a war of words erupted between the US and UK. In the last few days Mr Trump has attacked Ukraine's president and blindsided European leaders by excluding Kyiv from negotiations over peace talks with Russia.
The PM said: I have a very simple, clear message today: the UK is with you. Today and every day. From His Majesty the King to the NHS workers volunteering in hospitals in Ukraine to the communities that took Ukrainian refugees to their heart... (MORE - details)
What does the election result mean for German politics?
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/b...e-34736953
EXCERPT: . . . Is Germany polarised? Very much so, and strikingly. The old post-war consensus on the Atlantic alliance, a tolerant society, refugees, and recognition of Germany’s history is being fractured. AfD now dominates the old East Germany, and is scoring well among the young. But the hard/populist left is also doing well – and there’s a clear gender divide. Thus, among 18- to 24-year-old female voters, a remarkable 34 per cent voted Linke, another 14 per cent AfD, and 6 per cent for BSW. But among young men, AfD was the strongest party – on 25 per cent, against 21 per cent for the leftist parties.
Could it happen in the UK? There are parallels. The east of Germany, like parts of England and south Wales, has been “left behind” and is not fully “levelled up” even 35 years after reunification. Irregular migration and Islamophobia are also part of Reform UK’s appeal; and Euroscepticism, nationalism, and conspiracy theories also tend to circulate in such circles. However, there is only slight and patchy support for alternative and populist left-wing candidates in Britain – confined to pro-Gaza and “independent” candidates, including Jeremy Corbyn.
The big difference is in the electoral system: the once stable regime of proportional representation in Germany nowadays tends to fragment the party system and allow extreme groups into parliament. Thus far, all of Nigel Farage’s vehicles have been prevented from gaining more than a foothold in the House of Commons. But, just as Merz says about his new government being the last chance for the old parties, so it may be for Keir Starmer’s administration... (MORE - details)
RELATED (wikipedia): 2025 German federal election
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/b...e-34736953
EXCERPT: . . . Later this week, Mr Starmer will jet to Washington for his first face-to-face talks with Donald Trump since the Republican leader returned to the Oval Office. The PM told European leaders and Zelensky that Mr Trump had "changed the global conversation" around the ongoing war.
He said: "It has created an opportunity. Now we must get the fundamentals right. If we want peace to endure, Ukraine must have a seat at the table, and any settlement must be based on a sovereign Ukraine backed up with strong security guarantees.
"The UK is ready and willing to support this with troops on the ground, with other Europeans and with the right conditions in place, and ultimately, a US backstop will be vital to deter Russia from launching another invasion in just a few years' time. So we will do everything we can to get the best outcome for Ukraine and for us all."
But Mr Starmer also expressed solidarity with Kyiv after a war of words erupted between the US and UK. In the last few days Mr Trump has attacked Ukraine's president and blindsided European leaders by excluding Kyiv from negotiations over peace talks with Russia.
The PM said: I have a very simple, clear message today: the UK is with you. Today and every day. From His Majesty the King to the NHS workers volunteering in hospitals in Ukraine to the communities that took Ukrainian refugees to their heart... (MORE - details)
What does the election result mean for German politics?
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/b...e-34736953
EXCERPT: . . . Is Germany polarised? Very much so, and strikingly. The old post-war consensus on the Atlantic alliance, a tolerant society, refugees, and recognition of Germany’s history is being fractured. AfD now dominates the old East Germany, and is scoring well among the young. But the hard/populist left is also doing well – and there’s a clear gender divide. Thus, among 18- to 24-year-old female voters, a remarkable 34 per cent voted Linke, another 14 per cent AfD, and 6 per cent for BSW. But among young men, AfD was the strongest party – on 25 per cent, against 21 per cent for the leftist parties.
Could it happen in the UK? There are parallels. The east of Germany, like parts of England and south Wales, has been “left behind” and is not fully “levelled up” even 35 years after reunification. Irregular migration and Islamophobia are also part of Reform UK’s appeal; and Euroscepticism, nationalism, and conspiracy theories also tend to circulate in such circles. However, there is only slight and patchy support for alternative and populist left-wing candidates in Britain – confined to pro-Gaza and “independent” candidates, including Jeremy Corbyn.
The big difference is in the electoral system: the once stable regime of proportional representation in Germany nowadays tends to fragment the party system and allow extreme groups into parliament. Thus far, all of Nigel Farage’s vehicles have been prevented from gaining more than a foothold in the House of Commons. But, just as Merz says about his new government being the last chance for the old parties, so it may be for Keir Starmer’s administration... (MORE - details)
RELATED (wikipedia): 2025 German federal election