Below are my British Foreign Policy 10 from a week filled mainly with news about Harrys (the Meghan and England versions) and yet more cases for coping with Brexit.
The Times: Keir Starmer daren’t tell us how he’ll align with Europe—Worries about alienating Red Wall voters mean the cautious Labour leader is ignoring the call of New Labour ghosts
Roger Bootle in The Telegraph: Brexit has failed to boost the economy – but it’s still all to play for—The EU referendum has always been not so much an event as long drawn-out process.
Andrew Duff in the FT: Keir Starmer must plot a bold route back to Europe for Britain—By showing ingenuity, the EU can turn a truculent neighbour into a useful security partner.
Die Welt: Cleverly says Germany may not be fully committed to implementation of Northern Ireland Protocol—No sign of UK climbdown on eve of Anglo-German summit. In an exclusive interview with WELT, James Cleverly talks about the bilateral relations after Brexit and Germany’s “Zeitenwende”.
Chatham House: How can the US, UK and EU better coordinate their Indo-Pacific policies?—'That’s the vital question we’re asking in a multi-year research for collaboration with the Royal United Services Institute. In our new research paper, we discuss how far transatlantic partners share the same priorities in the Indo-Pacific, how they can better coordinate their efforts in the region, and how they can deconflict when their approaches diverge. We discussed our conclusions and received invaluable feedback for the next stage in our research at a closed-door Track 1.5 workshop that included senior officials from the US, UK and Europe.’
British Foreign Policy Group: Ukraine and Beyond: The Role and Potential of UK Aid in the UK’s International Strategy—'When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the UK collectively sprung into action, from government-supplied armoured vehicles to large-scale donations from the private sector, charities and ordinary Britons alike. In the face of stark images of suffering, the UK has been generous in its response to this crisis, and this new report from the BFPG seeks to evaluate the full scale and impact of UK aid delivered to Ukraine since the outbreak of war.'
FT: UK, Japan and Italy agree to build joint advanced fighter jet—Trilateral military project aimed at an increasingly assertive China and other threats.
UKICE: Sunak sets the course for Britain’s foreign policy in a maritime century—Alessio Patalano analyses Rishi Sunak’s first foreign policy speech as Prime Minister, highlighting that his approach places the sea at the centre of the UK’s future and reflects his longstanding preference for policies that strengthen the conditions for prosperity.
And finally… Armando Iannucci in The New Statesman: We held a Christmas ceasefire in 1914. Surely we can manage a Brexit truce now?—Let Remainers drop the gloating while Brexiteers take their fingers out their ears.