Right now, there are so many puzzles about war and peace in Europe it’s difficult to know where to start. Government ministers, military chiefs and the rest of us as citizens are all asking the same questions.
Can a Ukraine ceasefire hold? Can Europe look after its own security? Will Nato have “less America”, or even “No America”? In Britain that raises another national security question that has bubbled under British diplomacy for centuries. It can be summed up in a phrase: which way are we facing?
The era of the British Empire meant boom times for Victorian west-facing Atlantic seaports and cities – Bristol, Liverpool, Glasgow. Nowadays, Britain’s busiest container port is east-facing, Felixstowe, on the North Sea towards Europe. Ever since the end of the empire, successive UK governments have therefore continued to assert that Britain faces both ways, strongly linked geographically and economically with Europe (despite leaving the EU) and also linked in Nato with the US and Canada, and even more widely linked with the diverse countries of the British Commonwealth.
Diplomats used phrases to describe Britain as a “bridge” or even a “telephone exchange” between the US and Europe. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is trying to keep those links alive. He appears to have both good relations with US President Donald Trump and considerable influence within the EU, despite Brexit.
Three big changes are making Britain’s attempt to straddle two continents on different sides of the Atlantic increasingly difficult
But three big changes make Britain’s attempt to straddle two continents on different sides of the Atlantic increasingly difficult. First, bluntly, the Trump administration may not be a reliable partner. Mr Trump appears to see the EU in trade terms as both a rival and an annoyance, while the EU remains Britain’s most important trading partner.
Second, the Ukraine war – or the Ukraine peace, if peace becomes possible – potentially could drive a wedge between the interests of Washington in ending the conflict and the interests of European nations in future defence against Russia. Most Europeans see Ukraine not as a foreign war but as Europe’s frontline of defence against Russian expansionism. The idea of the US disengaging from Nato and European defence is shocking to many Europeans.
And third, there is the threat – or reality – of a transatlantic trade war. That would sour economic relationships to such an extent that it could undermine the goodwill and sense of a common threat that underpins Europe’s defence and US relations.
The last thing Mr Starmer wants is to be forced to choose between the US and the EU. The British want to face both ways. That means the Ukraine war and the prospects of a transatlantic tariff war are, as diplomats say, “not helpful”.
Rather than predict the future, however, we may draw conclusions from the past. The US historically has tried to use tariffs for economic advantage before. Both attempts have been disastrous for Americans. In 1890, a Republican Congressman William McKinley introduced tariffs of almost 50 per cent to “protect” the US economy. The economic damage was so great, and tariffs so unpopular that Republicans lost their majority in the House of Representatives with the number of seats they won reduced by nearly half, from 171 to 88.
A few years later, McKinley resurrected his career and became president, but he did not make the tariff mistake again. In the 1930s, during the presidency of another Republican, Herbert Hoover, US tariffs were imposed again. That contributed to the Great Depression. In 1932, the tariff failure led to the election by a landslide of Hoover’s Democratic opponent Franklin D Roosevelt promising “a new deal” to boost the economy.
And now? Is another Republican, Mr Trump, making the same mistake for a third time? We shall see. Next November, a third of the US Senate and all of the House of Representatives face the mid-term elections. If history is our guide, Republican members of Congress should perhaps consider how safe their slender majorities of seats in both Houses of Congress really are. My guess is, not very safe at all.
Yet the British dilemma remains. Every British diplomat wants to have good relations with the US. Every British diplomat wants the UK to have good relations with the EU and to trade freely around the world.
But it doesn’t take any great predictive ability to foresee that in the 21st century, the world is developing into three great trading blocs based on the US, the EU and China. India is also rising fast while Russia – whatever the outcome of the Ukraine war – is continuing its economic decline.
The Russian economy is boosted by Mr Trump's peace efforts but remains smaller than Italy’s. British diplomats are therefore preoccupied with being close to Mr Trump while also strong in Europe. Perhaps we need a new metaphor. Britain is not a “telephone exchange” or a “bridge”. Britain is a middle-ranking power balancing on a tightrope, and balance is everything.
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Iraq negotiating over Iran sanctions impact
- US sanctions on Iran’s energy industry and exports took effect on Monday, November 5.
- Washington issued formal waivers to eight buyers of Iranian oil, allowing them to continue limited imports. Iraq did not receive a waiver.
- Iraq’s government is cooperating with the US to contain Iranian influence in the country, and increased Iraqi oil production is helping to make up for Iranian crude that sanctions are blocking from markets, US officials say.
- Iraq, the second-biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, pumped last month at a record 4.78 million barrels a day, former Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi said on Oct. 20. Iraq exported 3.83 million barrels a day last month, according to tanker tracking and data from port agents.
- Iraq has been working to restore production at its northern Kirkuk oil field. Kirkuk could add 200,000 barrels a day of oil to Iraq’s total output, Hook said.
- The country stopped trucking Kirkuk oil to Iran about three weeks ago, in line with U.S. sanctions, according to four people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because they aren’t allowed to speak to media.
- Oil exports from Iran, OPEC’s third-largest supplier, have slumped since President Donald Trump announced in May that he’d reimpose sanctions. Iran shipped about 1.76 million barrels a day in October out of 3.42 million in total production, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
- Benchmark Brent crude fell 47 cents to $72.70 a barrel in London trading at 7:26 a.m. local time. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was 25 cents lower at $62.85 a barrel in New York. WTI held near the lowest level in seven months as concerns of a tightening market eased after the U.S. granted its waivers to buyers of Iranian crude.
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ETerra%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202021%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hussam%20Zammar%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mobility%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Pre-seed%20funding%20of%20%241%20million%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (all kick-offs UAE time)
Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin (10.30pm)
Saturday
Freiburg v Werder Bremen (5.30pm)
Paderborn v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Borussia Dortmund (5.30pm)
Borussia Monchengladbach v Bayer Leverkusen (5.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm)
Sunday
Schalke v Augsburg (3.30pm)
Mainz v RB Leipzig (5.30pm)
Cologne v Fortuna Dusseldorf (8pm)
Springtime in a Broken Mirror,
Mario Benedetti, Penguin Modern Classics
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
The Specs
Engine 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 582bhp (542bhp in GTS model)
Torque: 730Nm
Price: Dh649,000 (Dh549,000 for GTS)
End of free parking
- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18
- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued
- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket
- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200.
- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200
- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
RESULT
Los Angeles Galaxy 2 Manchester United 5
Galaxy: Dos Santos (79', 88')
United: Rashford (2', 20'), Fellaini (26'), Mkhitaryan (67'), Martial (72')
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
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Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster with a decades-long career in TV. He has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others. Karam is also the founder of Takreem.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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