That outstretched hand of US friendship to Iran to join the USA’s 4th of July celebrations round the world? The hand draws back. On the somewhat doubtful (in etiquette/protocol terms) basis that the Iranians have not replied to the invitations. When there is still some time to go before the receptions start? […]
An intriguing story (and a cross response) here. Basically, the USA has decided to press on with its new policy of inviting Iranian diplomats to the US 4th of July celebrations (US National Day equivalent) round the world, despite the grisly regime behaviour in Iran itself. As a gesture with a […]
Remember the bubbles coming out of the mouth of Naomi Wolf on the subject of the liberating effect of wearing shapeless clothes? President Sarkozy sets the rest of the ‘West’ a magnificent example in calling the burka what it is: a sign of subservience: In a major policy speech, he said […]
Sir Richard Dalton who served as HM Ambassador in Iran gives his view on the drama unfolding there: Despite how individuals may have voted – and notwithstanding brave acts of individual protest, such as resignations – the government apparatus, the parliament, the clergy, the commercial elite and most civil society […]
My good pal John Sawers is to take over as Head of MI6, the first (mainly) FCO person to do so although he did start off there a while ago before crossing to join the FCO. He enjoyed a brisk ride to the top with an unusual amount of sharp-end […]
I posted a comment on another Iran piece by Michael Totten at Commentary Contentions: Another good ploy is to make clear that Western governments will do everything possible to expose the names of individuals in the regime suspected of ordering or encouraging acts of brutality against unarmed citizens, and to help […]
A reader asks: I’m dimly aware of some of the covert aid the US offered to Milosevic’s opposition prior to his downfall. I am wondering if you can share some details about those events as well as whether your government also provided similar aid. This would be a very long […]
Mark Steyn picks up my earlier piece on Iran but is disinclined to offer the Obama Administration the benefit of any doubt: Our concerns are largely irrelevant: Obama? They don’t care about his speeches. The nukes? They’ll happen regardless, with wide support. This election was stolen for reasons of internal […]
Craig Murray links approvingly to the opinions of one Yassamine Mather of Hopi (Hands Off the People of Iran). She takes a view commendably similar to that of Christopher Hitchens, albeit from a rather different lumpen Marxist angle: It is no surprise that the highly contested results of the presidential elections in […]
I previously wrote about the ethics or not of one US blogger ‘outing’ an anonymous (to be precise pseudonymous) blogger who had persistently criticised him. Now we have Orwell Prize winner Jack Night revealed to be Detective Constable Richard Horton by the Times. Iain Dale is sickened. FleetStreetBlues is/are pragmatic: […]
