Everyone but Trump Understands What He’s Done Allied leaders know that any positive gesture they make will count for nothing.

Trump does not think strategically, historically, geographically, or even rationally. He does not connect actions he takes on one day to events that occur weeks later. Allied leaders know that if they help him in the Gulf, he won't be grateful, or even remember
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

Trump lies "about American support for Ukraine,which he repeatedly describes as worth $300 billion or more.The real number is closer to $50 billion,over 3 years.At current rates,Trump will spend that much in 3 months in the Middle East,in the course of starting a war rather than trying to stop one"

Tuoreessa V-Demin demokratiaindeksissä Suomen ja muiden pohjoismaiden välillä on 4 maata. Hälytyskellot soimaan !

Lisää indikaattoreita löytyy täältä, s. 48:

www.v-dem.net/documents/75...

This is one of the finest pieces of journalism I have read for a very, very long time.

On the Train to Nowhere Democracy, Erosion, and the Passengers Who Look Away

Democracies rarely collapse overnight. In Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s 1952 story The Tunnel, a train loses control inside a tunnel that never ends. More than 70 years later, the allegory feels uncomfortably familiar. New column: On the Train to Nowhere. No paywall

open.substack.com/pub/nordicle...

UK arguments for US operations from its bases blur the line between lawful self-defence and unlawful war on Iran The UK claims any US aircraft flying from bases like Fairford and Diego Garcia can only act in defence of British regional allies. Such a distinction may be unrealistic in a theatre of war.

The UK claims any US aircraft flying from bases like Fairford and Diego Garcia can only act in defence of British regional allies. Such a distinction may be unrealistic in a theatre of war. https://bit.ly/4lggYsn

Trump, the polls, and the war with Iran: What happened to the ‘President of Peace’? The president once saw opposition to wars as key to his popularity. But the Iran attacks show he is now more interested in spending political capital than saving it.

For years, Donald Trump railed against his predecessors for their misadventures in the Middle East. Now with Iran, Trump appears to have acquired a taste for regime change. https://bit.ly/46CXOGU

Spain shows how to respond to bullying.

Sánchez’s principled stand against Trump matters. So does Merz’s silence Spain’s leader has taken a strong position in refusing the US demand to use Spanish bases to strike Iran. Europe should show solidarity in the face of Trump’s threats.

Pedro Sánchez has taken a strong position in refusing the US demand to use Spanish bases to strike Iran. Europe should show solidarity with Spain in the face of Donald Trump’s threats. https://bit.ly/4l7IYhs

‘Let's not get a divorce’: A behind-the-scenes look at how countries handled Trump’s Greenland grab State Department cables obtained by POLITICO lay bare the frustrations — and aspirations — of US allies and adversaries watching Trump seek the Danish island.

EXCLUSIVE: Trump’s moves on Greenland rattled other nations behind the scenes.

State Department cables obtained by POLITICO exposed the deep reverberations of the president’s demands for Greenland as foreign officials vented their frustrations with U.S. counterparts.

Contrary to recent media reports, there has not been a *united* European show of strength against Trump this week.

Europe is divided into 3 camps on this: the hawks, the collaborators and the appeasers.

The jury's still out on which of the latter two categories Meloni is in.

“Britain lost 457 troops in Afghanistan, while another 2,000 military and civilian personnel were wounded.”
archive.ph/lhj0J

In a letter to multiple European ambassadors today, President Trump says that because Norway failed to give him a Nobel Peace Prize, “I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of peace”

The letter goes on to demand “complete and total control of Greenland.”

France urges EU retaliation in response to Trump’s threat over Greenland Emmanuel Macron asks fellow leaders to back punitive measures against US companies

France urges EU retaliation in response to Trump’s threat over Greenland ft.trib.al/ToAEFQd

I'd wager this is the angriest statement ever issued by the Nobel Peace Prize people...

US intentions towards Greenland threaten NATO’s future. But European countries are not helpless US threats to annex Greenland following the attack on Venezuela should be taken seriously. European countries have important leverage they should be prepared to use.

If US threats towards Greenland continue, Europe could refuse to refuel American ships in European ports, require higher payments for the stationing of US troops — or even close US military bases. https://bit.ly/3NcvJ2j

Media | Ruotsi sanoo, mitä ajattelee – Suomi ajattelee, mitä sanoo Ruotsissa päättäjät uskaltavat arvostella Yhdysvaltoja suoremmin kuin Suomessa. Neljä median tuntijaa pohtii, onko Ruotsin linja rohkea vai tekopyhä.

Ystävämme Nuukissa, Kööpenhaminassa ja Tukholmassa muistavat tämän. He miettivät, kuinka luotettava Helsinki todella on, kun on kyse yhteisestä uhasta ja siitä, että pysytään yhdessä ja yhtenäisinä.

Read the full column here. Other opinions available: www.hs.fi/paakirjoituk...

I'm really glad you said that in HS. Spot on.