Henry Newman: A dozen reasons to unstop the backstop

It now the main issue blocking a negotiated agreement – thus risking a No Deal and potentially a harder Irish border. In short, it risks triggering the very thing it is supposed to avoid.

Henry Newman: What will the EU look like after we have left it?

Our exit in will coincide with a new cycle of European elections which will redraw political power in the European Parliament and other EU institutions.

Daniel Hamilton: Ten years on from Putin’s invasion of Georgia, the West must learn the lesson of its failure

The 2008 war was an illustration of the serious threat the Kremlin posed. It went unheeded, and so Russia has repeated the trick.

Henry Newman: Yes, we have proposed a voluntary managed alignment in goods. But direct ECJ jurisdiction must end.

Either a new dispute resolution mechanism will be required, or the UK could dock into part of the EFTA court to resolve disputes over goods.

Eighteen countries express solidarity with the UK by expelling Russian ‘diplomats’

The “extraordinary international response by our allies” amounts to “the largest collective expulsion of Russian intelligence officers ever”, Johnson says.

Can May turn a good foreign policy week into political advantage at home?

Both leading EU states and the US are following the Prime Minister’s lead on Russia.

Young Labour’s anti-NATO policy is stuffed full of bogus, ahistorical nonsense

The future leaders of the Left either don’t know their history, or prefer a made-up version of it.

Isabel Oakeshott: By urging that private schools pay VAT, Gove spurred Labour’s new attack on the middle class

While it is no surprise that the current party leadership has leapt at his new idea, neither the moral nor the economic arguments stack up.

Richard Black: Now is the time for the UK to lead NATO

We should not only meet our spending minimum, but exceed it in order to maximise our vital strategic and tactical needs.

“NATO – the cornerstone of the West’s defence”. The Prime Minister’s speech to the Republican Party Congress: full text

“Let us renew the relationship that can lead the world towards the promise of freedom and prosperity marked out by those ordinary citizens 240 years ago.”

Michael Fallon: As this New Year begins, let’s honour the work of our brave servicemen and women

This morning, around 4,500 British servicemen and women will be serving our country across the globe. They are taking part in 25 operations in almost 30 countries.

Stuart Gardner: Do events in Lithuania signal the end for freedom of movement?

When the moral case is made for high levels of immigration, the negative impact of mass emigration on the countries left behind always seems to be forgotten.

Britain may need to join that European army after all

Trump’s words on NATO and his record to date suggest that we should tear up the rule book.

Owen Paterson: It’s time for the Government to face up to the grim truth. The NHS simply isn’t fit for purpose.

My think-tank’s new report finds that there are over 46,000 unnecessary deaths each and every year in the UK.

Why we hope that Hillary will win

Trump’s antics are a threat to the stability and peace of Europe.