Section: New Statesman (The United Kingdom)
I wanted to believe in Jeremy Corbyn. But I can’t believe in Seumas Milne
The Labour leader’s appointment of Seumas Milne is a disaster, argues Oliver Bullough. I wish Jeremy Corbyn well, I really do. I sincerely hope he shunts important issues – renationalisation, fairness, tax justice – onto the political mainline where they belong. I was even thinking of getting involved with his revitalised Labour Party. But...
Joseph Conrad and the lure of solitude
The sceptical doubt that infuses Conrad’s work – particularly his last great novel, Victory – has to do with the human world, which he believed was moved by illusions. “It was the very essence of his life to be a solitary achievement, accomplished not by hermit-like withdrawal with its silence and immobility, but by a system of restless...
Germany’s triumph: from the ruins of war, how a new European empire was built
European integration was designed to contain Berlin’s power – instead, it has increased it. Ein reich über alles: Hans Burgkmair the Elder’s woodcut of 1510 shows a double-heaed eagle, symbol of the Holy Roman empire. Photo: AKG-Images In a blistering speech to the Greek parliament on 15 July, the former finance minister Yanis...
This is what it’s like to be a Russian in Kiev
The growing feud between the two nations is traumatising: nearly everyone in Russia has relatives in Ukraine. The Second World War memorial in Kiev. Photo: Jana Bakunina As a Russian, I felt apprehensive, stepping off the plane in Kiev. Since the so-called Euromaidan revolution, which led to the ousting of the incumbent president Viktor...
Why we need a British Europe, not a European Britain
The critical thing for eurozoners to understand is that the United Kingdom is an exceptional power, not prepared to sacrifice its sovereignty. A single European federal state including Britain is not compatible with British sovereignty. Photos: Getty Images In September 1946 Winston Churchill announced that it would require an “act of faith” to...
Leader: Europe’s battalion of woes
The European Union has indeed brought peace and prosperity, but now this hard-earned and long-cherished stability is fracturing. An EU flag in Greece, which has been devastated by European austerity policies.Photo: Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP/Getty Images The aspiration to create a European confederation of like-minded liberal-democratic states was...
Farewell to the American century
As US influence wanes, a new world is emerging. Hand in hand: Chinese and Pakistani border guards at the Khunjerab Pass, which extends between their countries What do an Iraqi jihadist, the Afghan president, a Chinese entrepreneur, a Russian special forces officer and a Filipino fisherman have in common? They are just some of the figures who...
What the West should know about Xi Jinping, China’s most powerful leader since Mao
In the two years since he took China’s most important job, Xi Jinping has strengthened his grip on the state. Xi Jinping delivers his speech for the National Day reception in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing, September 2014. Photo: How Hwee Young/EPA In the two years since he took China’s most important job, Xi Jinping has become...
In Kiev, after the revolution, what do ordinary Ukrainians really think?
A new police force, rising prices and hope for the future on the streets of Ukraine’s capital. Kievan Lavra and the view over the city. Arriving in Kiev, you’d be hard pressed to find signs of economic hardship and the ongoing war. The billboards along the motorway leading from the airport into the city centre advertise luxury cars...
John King: The left wing case for leaving the EU
Europeans sneer “Little Englander” at those with a different opinion, but most of the arguments against EU membership are left-leaning and liberal. Rain on the people’s parade: “however sweet the propaganda”, King argues, the European Union is anti-democratic and “a tool for multinationals”. Photo: Jonathan McHugh Despite the denials by our...
