Another week, another round of hysteria about the Trump circus. Shock: Ivanka briefly occupies her father's chair at the G20 summit in Germany. Horror: Donald Jnr met an obscure Russian woman who falsely claimed she had some beans to spill about the Clinton campaign last year.
It is beginning to feel as though there is something manufactured about the constant outrage. Facts are being made to fit a narrative. Angela Merkel, no less, pointed out that “the delegations themselves decide, should the president not be present for a meeting, who will then take over and sit in the chair. Ivanka Trump was part and parcel of the American delegation, so that is something that other delegations also do.”
As for claims of shenanigans with Russia, Mark Warner, vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, put it well last month. "There's a lot of smoke," he said, "but no smoking gun." Or as the Wall Street Journal's Kimberley Strassel has pointed out: there is thus far “no evidence” for what she described as the “fiction” of “Trump-Russia collusion”.
Amid all the recent fuss a highly upbeat note was struck by one of Mr Trump's tweets after his meeting with Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the G20.
"We negotiated a ceasefire in parts of Syria which will save lives. Now it is time to move forward in working constructively with Russia!"
One might have thought the Russian and American leaders getting on, taking incremental steps to improve dire official relations, and recognising the value in working together rather than against each other, would be positive news.
Instead, there was yet more hand wringing and warnings from the large chorus of Washington commentators, senators and foreign policy sages who are reflexively anti-Russia (or anti-Putin, but that comes to the same thing for the foreseeable future).
This is not to ignore the allegations of Russian meddling in US elections. They are serious indeed.
Any realistic position would, however, have to take into account the fact that Mr Putin has been elected time and again. The size of his vote may have been boosted unfairly, but there's no doubt that he has won majorities and that he is Russia's legitimate and hugely popular ruler. If the possibility of forging friendly enough relations to "work constructively" with Russia was on the table, why would one not take that chance?
But there is a tendency of diehards in the US to desire confrontation with Russia and its leader.
The intellectuals and grandees of this tendency also warn so darkly about China's rise that they appear to want conflict in the Asia Pacific region, just as those who peddle the Clash of Civilisations narrative seem to want a war with Islam.
The less bellicose of us prefer to pose a simple question: wouldn't it be good if relations between the US and Russia improved?
Oh no, we are told. Russia is not America's friend. And maybe it hasn't been, although trying to encircle it with what Russians see as a hostile military alliance might have something to do with that. But maybe Trump and Putin could be friends. They both seem to want to be, and that could just work, because Trump isn't bothered by a lot of the human rights violations that Putin is accused of.
Trump's "new realism" is welcomed by many, and it is likely that that approach might extend to the Russian annexation of Crimea - especially if someone told him that it was part of Russia for nearly 200 years and its transfer within the Soviet Union was essentially an act of paperwork.
Again, many would be aghast at that. But Mr Trump is who he is, and Mr Putin is who he is, and we know that neither of them is likely to have a sudden personality transplant. Isn't it better that they get along?
Finally, it has been said that US presidents have often had good first meetings with Mr Putin, but the relationship soon deteriorates. Mr Trump and Mr Putin, on the other hand, have much in common. It may not work, but isn't it worth trying to see what could come from greater cooperation, maybe even a genuine friendship, between the leaders of Russia and America? I may be labelled a contrarian for suggesting so. What seems truly perverse to me is the presumption that suspicion, sanctions and spurning outreach is likely to produce a better result.
Sholto Byrnes is a senior fellow at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies, Malaysia
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
What is tokenisation?
Tokenisation refers to the issuance of a blockchain token, which represents a virtually tradable real, tangible asset. A tokenised asset is easily transferable, offers good liquidity, returns and is easily traded on the secondary markets.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Prop idols
Girls full-contact rugby may be in its infancy in the Middle East, but there are already a number of role models for players to look up to.
Sophie Shams (Dubai Exiles mini, England sevens international)
An Emirati student who is blazing a trail in rugby. She first learnt the game at Dubai Exiles and captained her JESS Primary school team. After going to study geophysics at university in the UK, she scored a sensational try in a cup final at Twickenham. She has played for England sevens, and is now contracted to top Premiership club Saracens.
----
Seren Gough-Walters (Sharjah Wanderers mini, Wales rugby league international)
Few players anywhere will have taken a more circuitous route to playing rugby on Sky Sports. Gough-Walters was born in Al Wasl Hospital in Dubai, raised in Sharjah, did not take up rugby seriously till she was 15, has a master’s in global governance and ethics, and once worked as an immigration officer at the British Embassy in Abu Dhabi. In the summer of 2021 she played for Wales against England in rugby league, in a match that was broadcast live on TV.
----
Erin King (Dubai Hurricanes mini, Ireland sevens international)
Aged five, Australia-born King went to Dubai Hurricanes training at The Sevens with her brothers. She immediately struck up a deep affection for rugby. She returned to the city at the end of last year to play at the Dubai Rugby Sevens in the colours of Ireland in the Women’s World Series tournament on Pitch 1.
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Biography
Favourite Meal: Chicken Caesar salad
Hobbies: Travelling, going to the gym
Inspiration: Father, who was a captain in the UAE army
Favourite read: Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter
Favourite film: The Founder, about the establishment of McDonald's
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
