Paul Knott
@paulknott11.bsky.social
190 followers 260 following 640 posts
Dockworker turned diplomat. Now, writer of 'The Accidental Diplomat'. Foreign policy for numerous outlets, including BBC radio at odd hours of the night. Rugby League & music fan.
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Reposted by Paul Knott
Carole Cadwalladr was right and we’d be in a better world if more people had listened.
This tweet has been doing the rounds on Twitter now that Nathan Gill has pleaded guilty.

If only someone had tried to investigate UKIP & Russian interference 🧐

There’s another timeline where the Guardian supported me, doubled down on the investigation & I look 5 years younger ..
“It’s important that people understand what they are dealing with. The biggest lesson I have learned is that you can’t negotiate with evil. And Russia is evil.” via @economist.com .
www.economist.com/europe/2025/...
Russia is torturing its Ukrainian captives
“Worse than the worst horror film” says the former mayor of Kherson
www.economist.com
It is a cause for some joy and a lot of relief that the people of Gaza are getting some relief from Israel's onslaught & that the Israeli hostages are being released. But caution is required in the longer run. Trump is not a details man and Netanyahu & Hamas are devious ones.
on.ft.com/46V79sM
Trump’s Gaza plan hinges on security force yet to take shape
Thornier second stage of US president’s proposal includes Hamas’s disarmament and Israel’s withdrawal
on.ft.com
Taking ever riskier actions is a sign of Putin's desperation and awareness that time is running out on his disastrous war on Ukraine. Russia is in deep trouble. Time to hold our nerve and step up the pressure on this evil regime. Its collapse would be the best way to bring us peace and security.
Grudging congratulations to @hullkr.bsky.social on finally ending forty years of abject failure and utter misery. (Will that do? From a @hullfcofficial.bsky.social fan). #rugbyleague #SuperLeague #GrandFinal @forty20live.bsky.social
@hco96.bsky.social's "A Flower Traveled in My Blood" is a brilliant book about the horrors of Argentina's 1970's military junta & the incredible Abuelas (Grandmothers) de Plaza de Mayo. If you have people this brave & dedicated to bending it, then that arc really can be shifted towards justice.
Reposted by Paul Knott
I visited the apartment building ICE raided on Tuesday today. Story to come, but you can walk right in. Half of the apartments have no doors on them. Children's stuff abandoned in some flats. *Citizen* residents told me they were arrested and held for hours in zipties. This is America
Reposted by Paul Knott
🔴NEW🔴

Thread 🧵

@bylinetimes.bsky.social can now reveal that, during the crucial period when convicted Reform leader Nathan Gill was most active, working directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most senior ally in Ukraine, he was also one of Nigel Farage’s closest confidantes 1/12
‘Thick as Thieves’: Nathan Gill and Nigel Farage’s Putin Problem
Far from being distant from the Reform UK Leader, insiders told Byline Times that the former MEP convicted of bribery was one of Farage’s closest aides, while we reveal how Gill worked on the Kremlin’...
bylinetimes.com
Reposted by Paul Knott
President Macron:
“We were very naive to leave our public space to social media networks controlled by US or Chinese companies that don’t share our interests and not interested in survival of our democracies.”
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MggN...
French President Macron Speaks at German Unity Day Ceremony | WION LIVE
YouTube video by WION
www.youtube.com
Uruguay's former President José “Pepe” Mujica was one of the most interesting (and successful) politicians of recent times. It's well-worth reading and listening to his thoughts on life.
thebaffler.com/latest/free-...
Free Radicals | Sammy Feldblum
Though José Mujica did not publish much writing, his views on life and politics live on through the corpus of interviews.
thebaffler.com
"Fainthearts worry about escalation, but declining to act threatens escalation of a different kind. If Russia thinks it can get away with limited acts of aggression, something really dangerous might one day happen".
www.economist.com/leaders/2025...
Vladimir Putin is testing the West—and its unity
NATO must resist Russia’s efforts to corrode it from within
www.economist.com
Please read this piece by @rmcunliffe.bsky.social in The New Statesman. If you really must "pick a side", the pick the side of decent, caring and peaceful people everywhere and stand together with them, whoever and wherever they are.
Crucial point made (again) by @keirgiles.bsky.social @chathamhouse.org today. "It's failing to confront Russia & set boundaries that has got us into this position". Don't fall for the Kremlin's fearmongering. They live by Stalin's maxim "if you feel mush, you push. If you find steel, you withdraw".
I have nothing but disgust for these vile terrorists who arrogantly think their twisted views entitle them to murder innocent people. Deepest condolences to the victims and their families.
Reposted by Paul Knott
HOPE not hate condemn the appalling, violent attack at a synagogue in Manchester which has taken place on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. Our thoughts are with the Jewish community and all affected.
Reposted by Paul Knott