In recent weeks, the British public, increasingly alarmed at the behaviour of Vladimir Putin, has learnt that the army stands at its lowest strength since the Napoleonic wars, that both of our otherwise magnificent aircraft carriers have trouble getting seaborne, that one of our warships crashed into another because of “faulty wiring”, and that Donald Trump has threatened to withdraw the US commitment to Nato.
Even the special forces, the finest of their kind in the world, are now being accused of war crimes in Afghanistan. It’s not inspiring confidence...
Why are our missiles misfiring?
Something to do with telemetrics, maybe. If anyone does know, then it’s a secret. The MoD says “an anomaly occurred” – a refreshingly novel euphemism for failure – and that the incident was “event specific”. Even so, a similar thing apparently happened in 2016. The government assures us that “there are no implications for the reliability of the wider Trident missile systems and stockpile”. Phew.
Is our independent nuclear deterrent still a deterrent?
Esta historia es de la edición February 22, 2024 de The Independent.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición February 22, 2024 de The Independent.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Courageous Brighton rock Man City to reach top four
Brighton staged a sensational late fightback to come from behind and send Manchester City to a fourth consecutive defeat with a pulsating 2-1 win at the Amex Stadium.
Doubt creeps in as England.stung at the death again
Another week, another heartbreak for England and now serious questions must be asked about the direction of the Steve Borthwick project.
'Guys on mopeds were beating up an Israeli... they were looking for Jews'
Football hooligans and ‘antisemitic hit-and-run squads' made for a volatile Amsterdam atmosphere, reports Barney Davis.
Inside 4B - the women's group going on ‘men strike'
Zoë Beaty meets an American who's become a symbol for the growing movement of females rejecting relations with men
Qatar to suspend mediation efforts on Gaza, say officials
Qatar has decided to suspend its key mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel, officials said yesterday, after growing frustration with the lack of progress on a ceasefire deal for Gaza.
Biden bears brunt of blame game among the Democrats
Fingers are pointing at the president after Donald Trump's sweeping victory - but some strategists argue other factors played a part in Kamala Harris's defeat, writes
Chief of staff dubbed ice maiden by Trump will keep 'clowns' out of Oval Office
Informal advisers that dogged first presidency to be got rid of
Coroner's warning of cancel culture after student suicide
A coroner has called on the government to examine the prevalence of \"cancel culture\" on university campuses, after ruling that a 20-year-old Oxford student took his own life after being \"ostracised\" by his peers.
'I did not know you could be born without a uterus'
Andreia Trigo is dedicated to helping others struggling with infertility because of her own diagnosis of MRKH syndrome
Healey says Ukraine war inspired son to join army
The defence secretary has revealed his son joined the army as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying the conflict is now “personal”.
