Our era has more in common with the 1930s and 1940s than any other period of recent history: it is the second age of dictators of modern times. As in the first age of dictators, this generation of despots act with ever-increasing impunity. The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, invading Ukraine. Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, ethnically cleansing Nagorno-Karabakh. The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, committing genocide against Uyghurs. Iran sponsoring proxy wars.
Keir Starmer’s and John Healey’s Christmas trip to a Nato base in Estonia to visit British troops, and the soundbites that followed, demonstrate how the defence of the realm has moved back up the political agenda. It is a good moment to reflect on Labour’s pedigree when it comes to defence and foreign policy, and the party’s performance over the past two years in the face of tyranny.
