![]() The undercurrent that Snell pays particular attention to is Blair’s pursuit of unilateral military action, both in Kosovo and Iraq, subverting the international ‘rules-based system’ that had more or less prevailed since 1945, and which the UK was an avowed supporter of.īy undermining the rulebook, the UK didn’t do the world order any favours down the road.īy the time we get to Syria, which began as another wave of the Arab spring in 2011 but rapidly descended into a civil war that continues eleven years later, it almost feels as though the author is trying to have his cake and eat it. ‘In 2022,’ he reminds us, ‘Transparency International, the global anti-corruption campaign group, described Britain as a ‘safe haven for corrupt individuals, their allies and assets.’’Įarlier in the book, Snell is firm about the fact that the military intervention in Kosovo was not a success, even though at the time it was hailed a success and led to lots of Kosovan babies being christened ‘Tonibler’.īy drawing a false conclusion Blair was emboldened to push forwards towards the disastrous invasion of Iraq in 2003, forming an improbably strong bond with US President George Bush that went far beyond normal behaviour, leading to the flawed Weapons of Mass Destruction intelligence that seemed to be more about pleasing the Americans than obtaining the truth. Snell points out that just days later Russian energy giant Gazprom, ‘effectively the Kremlin’s piggy bank,’ used the City to raise bonds worth nearly $5 billion. ![]() ![]() The Prime Minister Theresa May told the House of Commons, ‘There can be no question of business as usual with Russia.’ He notes the near refusal in British government to connect the dots between servicing this corrupt money, and what comes of it.įor example, there was huge media coverage and political outcry in the UK around the poisonings in Salisbury by Russian agents. His analysis extends to commercial gain and the ‘laundromat’, for example, a reference to the UK’s unique ability to make kleptocrats feel at home, and to help them with their money laundering. Yet he is at pains to point out that he’s a patriot himself. Snell showcases a Britain that is ‘at the very least, desperate to please, delusional, self-important, and slapdash.’ The reason for the book’s title and the word ‘broke’, is that there is a terrifying arc, or echo if you prefer, that connects Russia’s attack on Ukraine in 2022 back to the then Labour government’s decision to take military action in Kosovo, followed by war in Iraq in 2003, neither of which were played out according to the ‘rules.’ ![]() Make no mistake, the book is a withering attack on blundering leadership and seemingly endemic British political ‘chronic short termism.’ What we get is fact-based analysis, startling for the simple reason that so many of those facts land so disruptively, and startling for the consistency of the main trajectory, which is how poorly the UK has been served by its leaders in recent decades. While the deeper scholarly tug of war might only just be beginning on this recently ‘lived’ history, and will no doubt rage for generations to come, what can be said at the start is that Snell has avoided the potholes of being either tendentious or autobiographical. He is an astonishing ‘primary source’ in his own right. He also served in Afghanistan and was often in dangerous hotspots. In a remarkable diplomatic career that followed his 1st class history degree at Oxford, Arthur served in Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Yemen, learning Arabic.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |