Britain has taken its first steps towards strengthening ties with the European Union in defence talks, as its continental neighbours grow increasingly concerned about the prospect of a trade war with the US, analysts have told The National.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer held discussions with EU leaders on Monday with a view to a post-Brexit security deal, with Europe anxious about the future of US support for Nato and Russia's military strength.
He told EU leaders at a dinner that fragmentation "would weaken us all". He added: "So let's maximise the industrial weight and clout we have together."
Downing Street sees its professional military – which is large by European standards – as a useful bargaining tool to gain greater access to EU trade. Mr Starmer’s visit was framed as a first step to stronger economic links.
For the EU, having a nuclear power with professional armed forces as an ally is crucial because “we can’t talk about security without the Brits”, a senior EU diplomat said.
A senior EU official told The National the meeting was “a clear message that defence is now at the heart of the EU’s agenda” and “a crucial step in preparing for the future”.
Monday’s meeting, attended by Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte, also focused on how to “strengthen and deepen partnership” between the EU and Nato.
Trump's Nato threat
But with US President Donald Trump following through on his threat to impose tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, and with the EU perhaps next in his sights, the continent is looking to Britain’s long-standing US alliance for help.
“The EU is deeply unsettled by the initial activities of the Trump presidency, to the extent that they think the UK can be a positive influence on the US,” said retired brigadier Ben Barry, of the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank.
“Just as important is that if there are ructions with Washington, DC, the UK can potentially help as a bridge between the EU and Washington. That will be on their minds.”
British military power
In addition to its nuclear arsenal, Britain also brings Europe greater security with its information-gathering assets, including its access to the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing with the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Britain also brings strategic military airlift, expeditionary medical capabilities and combat engineers, along with “some respectable combat capability in all three services”, said Mr Barry.
But military analyst Paul Beaver highlighted “a real feeling of concern” in Europe that “there might not be an American presence in the future”.
However, the senior EU diplomat emphasised that the bloc would “react with a cool head and discipline” to Washington announcements. “We won’t react on every tweet out of Washington but instead focus on the things that bind us, security and trade,” he added.
EU reset
But it is more the politics of Mr Starmer being the first British leader to attend an informal EU summit since Brexit that comes at a “critical moment” in the Labour government’s Europe reset, said Ed Arnold, European security specialist at the Royal United Services Institute think tank.
However, he took issue with the “little detail” to emerge from Labour’s election promise of an “ambitious UK-EU defence and security pact” and the value this would bring.
“Despite defence being a sensible area to pursue enhanced co-operation, it will not be easy to insulate it from other policy areas and it should therefore be seen as one part of a wider set of negotiations,” he added.
Benefits of EU pact?
But with only four EU countries not part of Nato – Ireland, Austria, Cyprus and Malta – commentators have raised the question of what benefit the new pact might bring. “The EU is very welcome to add military value in Europe, but it should be complementary to Nato rather than replacing it,” Mr Barry said.
He also emphasised that any peacekeeping force that might be sent to Ukraine if a ceasefire is negotiated with Russia should have a “Nato flag on it”, with the power and authority the alliance brings.
“The EU should really do things in terms of military technology and ammunition production that adds value both to Ukraine and Nato, but it should not inhibit Nato,” he said.
Mr Beaver said there was a “good argument to be made for the EU being more cohesive” but Nato was a sufficient alliance, and Monday’s meeting appeared to be an attempt to “put something together in order to negotiate with Trump”.
He also suggested Mr Starmer was playing Britain’s defence card to “ingratiate himself with the EU” rather than with Nato, which he warned sent “mixed messages to the Americans”.
“Some of my American friends are saying, ‘what are you doing, guys?’” he added.
Other commentators suggested that Mr Starmer was being drawn into a closer relationship with the EU to bring Britain on to its side in case a trade war erupts with the US.
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
if you go
The flights
Emirates flies to Delhi with fares starting from around Dh760 return, while Etihad fares cost about Dh783 return. From Delhi, there are connecting flights to Lucknow.
Where to stay
It is advisable to stay in Lucknow and make a day trip to Kannauj. A stay at the Lebua Lucknow hotel, a traditional Lucknowi mansion, is recommended. Prices start from Dh300 per night (excluding taxes).
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
((Disclaimer))
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is Diwali?
The Hindu festival is at once a celebration of the autumn harvest and the triumph of good over evil, as outlined in the Ramayana.
According to the Sanskrit epic, penned by the sage Valmiki, Diwali marks the time that the exiled king Rama – a mortal with superhuman powers – returned home to the city of Ayodhya with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman, after vanquishing the 10-headed demon Ravana and conquering his kingdom of Lanka. The people of Ayodhya are believed to have lit thousands of earthen lamps to illuminate the city and to guide the royal family home.
In its current iteration, Diwali is celebrated with a puja to welcome the goodness of prosperity Lakshmi (an incarnation of Sita) into the home, which is decorated with diyas (oil lamps) or fairy lights and rangoli designs with coloured powder. Fireworks light up the sky in some parts of the word, and sweetmeats are made (or bought) by most households. It is customary to get new clothes stitched, and visit friends and family to exchange gifts and greetings.
Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction
Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.
Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.
Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.
Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.
Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.
What are the guidelines?
Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.
Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.
Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.
Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.
Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.
Source: American Paediatric Association
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Sheikh Zayed's poem
When it is unveiled at Abu Dhabi Art, the Standing Tall exhibition will appear as an interplay of poetry and art. The 100 scarves are 100 fragments surrounding five, figurative, female sculptures, and both sculptures and scarves are hand-embroidered by a group of refugee women artisans, who used the Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery art of tatreez. Fragments of Sheikh Zayed’s poem Your Love is Ruling My Heart, written in Arabic as a love poem to his nation, are embroidered onto both the sculptures and the scarves. Here is the English translation.
Your love is ruling over my heart
Your love is ruling over my heart, even a mountain can’t bear all of it
Woe for my heart of such a love, if it befell it and made it its home
You came on me like a gleaming sun, you are the cure for my soul of its sickness
Be lenient on me, oh tender one, and have mercy on who because of you is in ruins
You are like the Ajeed Al-reem [leader of the gazelle herd] for my country, the source of all of its knowledge
You waddle even when you stand still, with feet white like the blooming of the dates of the palm
Oh, who wishes to deprive me of sleep, the night has ended and I still have not seen you
You are the cure for my sickness and my support, you dried my throat up let me go and damp it
Help me, oh children of mine, for in his love my life will pass me by.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
What is Reform?
Reform is a right-wing, populist party led by Nigel Farage, a former MEP who won a seat in the House of Commons last year at his eighth attempt and a prominent figure in the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.
It was founded in 2018 and originally called the Brexit Party.
Many of its members previously belonged to UKIP or the mainstream Conservatives.
After Brexit took place, the party focused on the reformation of British democracy.
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson became its first MP after defecting in March 2024.
The party gained support from Elon Musk, and had hoped the tech billionaire would make a £100m donation. However, Mr Musk changed his mind and called for Mr Farage to step down as leader in a row involving the US tycoon's support for far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson who is in prison for contempt of court.
