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Jeremy Stewardson's avatar

France under Macron and indeed before him has never missed an opportunity to damage Britains interests . In Britains current and recent prime ministers , we have a succession of poor negotiators, timid and incompetent, giving away rights needlessly and failing to capitalise on the obvious opportunities of Brexit . So holding out hopes for successful joint projects with France is a waste of time effort and resources - it serves only Starmers desire to get Britain back into the EU against the wishes of its people .

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Bill Emmott's avatar

The trouble is that the “opportunities” of Brexit have proved far from obvious, even to fundamentalists. I don’t think this can be attributed just to incompetent negotiators, incompetent though they certainly have been. It is a result of realities of the world economy, and of Britain’s place within it — and especially the reality of Britain’s geography

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Brooks Keogh's avatar

bill-i heard on BBC this morning that China conducted live-fire military exercises in the Tasman sea this spring-is that as worrisome as it sounds to me?

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Bill Emmott's avatar

Brooks, certainly Admiral Sam Paparo, commander of US Indopacom, says it is becoming increasingly difficult to tell whether the PLA’s actions are exercises or might be the real thing. I think it remains unlikely that China will take the risk. But clearly there is real cause for concern

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Brooks Keogh's avatar

do you think they shifted their focus from no. pacific to so. or 'merely' expanded?on another issue,I thought the mineral deal,tho in the future,was to pay for weapons-but if we sell weapons to Europe,we get paid now and later-good for us,for Ukraine and Europe?

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Léopold Schonbach's avatar

Entente positiVE. Sorry Bill.

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Bill Emmott's avatar

Sorry, Henri -- we Brits never can tell our genders apart...

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