@edwardluce.bsky.social
FT's US columnist/commentator. Author of several books including NYT best selling biography of Zbigniew Brzezinski (Simon & Schuster 2025). People lacking a sense of humour might get muted.
✋ Former USG war crimes lawyer here.
Apropos of SecDef's remarks this morning:
Denial of quarter—even the declaration of no quarter—is a war crime.
And recognized as such by the US Government.
From DoD's Manual for Military Commissions.
Bingo!
Trump’s chronically, self-harmingly, dangerously, monomaniacal brain. My Swamp Notes with @gideonrachman.bsky.social
Free to read as.ft.com/r/793d87f5-c...
Did Lunch with the FT today in Montgomery, AL with the remarkable Bryan Stevenson. Nourishment for the soul.
Haha
Thankyou Venetia.
We can apparently take the Russians at their word.
Razor-sharp mind, this one.
Thanks so much.
Thanks so much Stephen.
"Trump will nevertheless present his exit as a victory. Iran will have every incentive to ensure nobody believes him. That is the crux of his self-inflicted dilemma." - excellent by @edwardluce.bsky.social:
alas, a borrowed line
With free to read link
as.ft.com/r/1754a96b-d...
"Trump chose to go to war and has taken explicit satisfaction in his power of life and death. War is a grave step after all other options have been exhausted. That Trump had other courses of action is well known. That he preferred this one is hard to unsee." My column. www.ft.com/content/2f3e...
Pay her less attention. The European foreign policy statements of worth are joint ones by heads of government. Not that they've been worth much recently.
Yeah, it's one of the most blatant hatchet jobs I've encountered - starting with the commissioning. The piece is riddled with Putin talking points.
Exactly.
That Trump repeats calls for Iran's unconditional surrender on same day he's got the defence industrial chiefs round for an emergency meeting on military supplies perfectly sums up his grasp of ends & means.
What happens next in Trump’s war of choice? How bad could it get? Watch my answer to @djrothkopf.bsky.social, then stay for smarter answers from @jonatomic.bsky.social and @edwardluce.bsky.social . Spoiler: Nothing good is coming out of this war. youtu.be/9vt_-eA2JgI?...
noted!
good question. actually nothing.
"It goes without saying that you shouldn’t trust Hegseth to walk your dog, let alone set the limits of warfare." My Swamp Notes newsletter with Richard Waters on the Pentagon's ominous take-down of Anthropic. Free to read. as.ft.com/r/e8dc25c9-1...
Rubio: “Let me tell you, Iran is run by lunatics, religious fanatic lunatics.”
Trump has escalation dominance over Spinal Tap. He started at 12 and now gives himself a 15.
Bang on. From which section did this come?
Thanks David!
It's a good interview with Beevor but he's a bit off on US politics...Trump wasn't using Minneapolis to "cancel the mid-terms".
Sceptical. Just an older verison of the bullshitting, grifting, racist conman he always was.
Really looking forward to this.
Ha thankyou:
it's been around for a few days which is why I put it in quote marks