Zelensky is right about Putin

Zelensky is meeting with Trump in Florida to try and close the gap in the 20-point peace plan for ending the war in Ukraine. It's still a big gap because it revolves around the 15-20 per cent of Donbas in eastern Ukraine which Zelensky's troops are still controlling. But clearly Trump hopes Zelensky will move closer to his plan which is to turn the whole of Donbas, including the territory seized by the Russians, into an ecnomic zone which is free of all troops. Zelensky knows beyond any doubt that whatever comes out of the Florida meeting, Putin will reject it. Zelensky said as much before he began talks with Trump. Putin, he said, doesn't want peace, he wants war. He is totally right, and if Trump thinks otherwise, he is fooling himself. Putin has never wanted peace, despite Trump's insistence that the Russian leader DOES seek peace. Putin has said over and over again that he will take the whole of Donbas for Russia, whether by diplomacy or military force. Zelensky says he can't for constituional, moral and every other reason, hand over territory still in Ukrainian hands. So, total impasse. It's difficult to envisage what Trump can come up with in today's Florida meeting that will change this. READ MY NEW SPY THRILLER, AGENT REDRUTH!!

Trump's big gains and big losses in 2025

In some of the key areas of foreign and domestic policy, President Donald Trump has enjoyed remarkable success in his first year of office. Notably, illegal immigration has come down so sharply that border police are reporting that the number of attempts by people to cross over from Mexico has been cut by more than 80 per cent. Sine the border between Mexico and the United States is nearly 2,000 miles long that is a significant achievement. The economy, too, is showing signs of improving growth, with figures for the three months up to September showing a rise from 3.8 per cent to 4.3 per cent. That represents the best growth in the US economy for two years. Trump has promised that next year will see a boom in the economy. The imposition of trade tariffs across the world have been more controversial but it forced every country to renegotiate arrangements with the US and, in some cases, have led to retaliatory tariffs by other countries, especially China. However, the tariffs were put in place in order to reduce dependency on imports from other countries and to expand business and industry in the US. So far, while the rest of the world has had to readjust trade relations with the US, Trump’s tariffs have not yet brought down the cost of living. The cost of certain foods has continued to rise. On the world stage, the president has played a dominating role but despite a constant round of talks and meetings and peace proposals, Trump has been unable to persuade President Putin, the Russian leader, to end his war against Ukraine. In that sense it has been a frustrating year for Trump who vowed to stop the war within 24 hours of taking office. The year is also ending with surprise attacks by US forces against Isis in northern Nigeria. Trump predicted some time ago that he might be forced to take military action against terrorists in Nigeria who were killing and abducting Christians, many of them children. But the strikes which began last week, and were coordinated with the Nigerian government, took everyone by surprise. For a president who wanted to bring wars to an end, 2025 has been a busy one for the US military: US B-2 bombers joined the Israeli air force in targeting Iran’s nuclear facilities in June., and there have been US airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen and against Isis in Syria.; plus the threat of airstrikes against drugs cartels in Venezuela. The US still has an armada of warships off Venezuela, attacking suspected drug-trafficking boats, and piling on pressure on President Nicolas Maduro, the regime leader in Venezuela, to step down and go into exile. Like the failure to bring the war to an end in Ukraine, the confrontation with Maduro has yet to produce results. Overall, this year has been a mixture of considerable success and frustrating setbacks for the Trump administration. Trump’s popularity ratings at home have also dropped. Perhaps 2026 will see the economic boost Trump has promised and a better future for Ukraine, with Putin finally agreeing to a compromise land-deal settlement. BUY MY NEW SPY THRILLER, AGENT REDRUTH, SEQUEL TO SHADOW LIVES. CHECK IT OUT ON AMAZON.

Trump's new war in Nigeria

In nearly 12 months of Trump Part Two, the US has been at war B-2 bomber-style against Iran - the nuke-bashing strikes - at war with rebel forces in Yemen, to stop them launching drones and cruise missiles at merchant ships in the eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea, at war with Isis in Syria, threatening war of sorts against Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, and now sending missiles and bombs against Isis in Northern Nigeria. Quite a list of aggressive action by a president who wanted and still wants desperately to end the war in Ukraine without having American soldiers involved. Where next will he point his missiles? Not against Russia, that's for sure. But the spat of missile strikes will show the world that Trump means business and the Bad Guys better watch out. But none of these bombing missions is going to change the strategic realities that exist on this planet, vis a vis, Russia and Putin, and China and Xi Zinping. All this other stuff is really peripheral at a time when Putin is seriously trying to recast Russia as a revised Soviet empire, and Xi Zinping is noving closer to his 2027 deadline for resolving the Taiwan issue by force or diplomacy. I can't imagine this Nigeria adventure will do much to stop Isis from its murderous targeting of Christians. And nothing, so far, has caused Putin to worry about carrying on the war against Ukraine. PLEASE BUY MY NEW SPY THRILLER, AGENT REDRUTH, REVIEWERS SAY IT'S FANTASTIC. CHECK IT OUT ON AMAZON AND GOODREADS.

Yet another version of the Ukrainian peace plan

Bit by bit, inch by inch, a formula for bringing the war in Ukraine to an end is being sewn together. It's pow like a giant tapestry with a multitude of different concepts aimed, basiczlly, at trying to please Putin. I somehow doubt Putin is in a mood to do business with anyone, especially the Ukrainians but let's see. He has Christmas to read the proposals and put his red pencil through it. The biggest idea is to turn a large chunk of the Donbas region into a demilitarised zone and monitored by an international force. I would have thought that would be a no no for Putin. But perhaps Trump will at last put maximum pessure on Putin to do a deal.

Donald Trump's Golden Fleet

For any naval afficionados, Donald Trump's announcement about a new Golden Fleet of the biggest battleships the world has ever seen will have been confusing. First of all a battleship is a special breed of warship of its own. The last battleship in the US Navy was the USS Missouri which was commissioned in 1944 and served in the Second World War, the Korean war and the 1990 Gulf war. The mighty warship is now in a museum in Pearl Harbour, Hawaii. Some reports say the new "battleship", to be called USS Defiant, will be a bigger version of the current guided-missile destroyers or frigates. But Trump has called the new warships battleships, so I guess that's what they will be. The ships are expected to be 30,000-40,000 tons. Fully loaded, the USS Missouri was 58,000 tons. The US Navy's Constellation-class frigates are only 8,000 tons, and the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are up to 9,700 tons. So Trump is right in saying that the planned new "battleships" will be bigger and better. But someone should make it clear whether these Golden Fleet warships are to be a new-style battleship or a much bigger destroyer/frigate. BUY AGENT REDRUTH, MY NEW SPY THRILLER. CHECK IT OUT ON AMAZON.

Christmas without peace and happiness

Nothing looks positive in Gaza or Ukraine or Sudan or the Congo or Venezuela etc etc etc. The world, in other words, looks about as bad as it could be, with the Christmas message falling into the cracks where violence and death sit. As Lindsay Graham, the wise old American senator of the Republican party, said in an interview after a visit to Israel: Hamas is not disarming and Hamas wants to carry on ruling Gaza, and no one is stopping them. The US and Ukraine have had further talks on finding a peace formula to end the four-year-old war and claim to have had constructive talks. But no sign of a breakthrough because there is no breakthrough to find. All the other places where there are supposed to be ceasefires in operation are erupting in violence. This is the way of the world this Christmas. There is very little to lift spirits. I can't remember such a bleak period of time in recent history. PLEASE BUY MY NEW SPY THRILLER, AGENT REDRUTH, A BRILLIANT CHRISTMS GIFT. CHECK IT OUT ON AMAZON

Gaza still as bleak as ever

There is little reason to express optimism for the Palestinian people in Gaza and West Bank. The "war" may be over but in many ways it carries on for so many of them. Most Palestinians in Gaza have lost their homes and are living in tents. Food is coming in at a faster rate but there is still no clear idea what their future will be. We have gone from all of them being persuaded to leave and live in another country while Donald Trump builds a Gaza Riviera, to the position today where half of Gaza is occupied by Israeli troops and the other half is ruthlessly controlled by Hamas. This is the same Hamas which the Israel Defence Forces supposedly defeated. They may have lost all their top leaders and a huge amount of weeponnry and tunnels to hide in. But those who survived the IDF onslaught - perahps 17,000-20,000 - fill the streets of their 50 per cent of Gaza,showing every intention of keeping their controlling position far into the future and may be for ever. There is a ceasefire which is violated frequently by both sides, so life is not as violent and dangerous as it used to be. But it's like Gaza has been put into limbo. There is no sign of the next phase of the ceasefire peace plan under which Hamas will be disarmed and put out of business and construction companies will pour in and rebuild the territory, destroyed by war. So, Christmas for the Palestinian people both in Gaza and in the West Bank where there has been increasing violence, will not be a happy and festive season. How much longer is this going to go on?