Kaja Kallas is the perfect candidate for the job of Secretary General of NATO.

Top 10 reasons why 🧵👇 1. Kaja Kallas, as the Prime Minister of Estonia, has played a major role in supporting Ukraine.

The total sum of Estonia's assistance to Ukraine given since 24/02 2022 and planned for 2024-27 is €1.2 bn.
(€316 mln in civilian assistance. €900 mln in military assistance.)

Ukraine is much older than Russia and has faced much greater difficulties in its history, fighting for its independence and national identity with incredible courage.

Ukrainian history thread 🧵 1/ 882: Establishment of Kyivan Rus', with Kyiv as its capital, marking the beginning of the recorded history of Ukraine.

Prior to the establishment of Kyivan Rus', the Eastern Slavic lands were fragmented among various tribal unions. Oleg's conquest of Kyiv and subsequent actions were instrumental in consolidating these tribes into a single polity, laying the groundwork for the development of a unified Slavic identity.

Kyiv's strategic location on the Dnieper River facilitated trade between the Byzantine Empire and the northern territories (Scandinavia and the Baltic regions), enhancing the wealth, influence, and cultural development of Kyivan Rus'. This trade route, known as the "route from the Varangians to the Greeks," was vital for the economy and the spread of Christianity and Byzantine culture.

In 988, under the reign of Prince Vladimir the Great, Kyivan Rus' officially adopted Christianity from the Byzantine Empire. This pivotal event had profound implications for the cultural, social, and political life of the state, aligning it more closely with European Christian kingdoms and leading to significant cultural and religious developments.

Poland 🇵🇱 holds its general election on Sunday.

A 🇷🇺-appeasing🪆 Civic Platform win (they are polling at ~30%) will threaten the security of the whole West.

🇩🇪 had Merkel & Schröder,🇫🇷 had Sarkozy, 🇵🇱 still has Tusk.

🧵Here is a thread about the Poles who wanted 🇷🇺 in NATO. 1. As soon as elected, Tusk's first foreign policy objective was to prevent the American Missile Schield supported by President Kaczyński from happening.

It was a military technology marvel that could have protected the whole West from ballistic attacks.
tvpworld.com/73399257/how-d…

🇵🇱 MFA @RauZbigniew’s explanation in @politico.

“Above all, 🇵🇱 believed in 🇺🇦’s victory as other allies concluded it was too late to arm the country.
Of all the allies, Poles took upon themselves the heaviest burden.”

Essential reading
Highlights 🧵 1/8
politico.eu/article/polish… Polish aid to Ukraine is “equivalent to over 3 percent of the country’s GDP, nearly four times as much as wealthy Germany and almost 10 times more than the United States.”
2/8

The second front: how Russia wants to undermine Western support for Ukraine

"The real scenario that inspires them is the Georgian scenario of 2008-2009: it consisted of stirring up among Georgians the bitterness felt after the betrayal of the West, ...
1/
desk-russie.eu/2023/09/16/le-… ...of rubbing salt into the wound, in order to demoralize them, to discourage them, to make them plunge back into the corruption and cynicism characteristic of the “Russian world” and finally to resign themselves to electing a government of collaboration."
2/

As promised: a thread on Louis XIV's horrible health issues.

Louis XIV lived a life punctuated with severe health issues, from smallpox at age 5 to senile gangrene. His resilience amidst primitive medical treatments is astonishing.
🧵1/ Born to a valetudinarian father and a lymphatic mother, the Sun King's health was precarious since his early years, battling life-threatening illnesses including smallpox and fevers.
2/

It's not just the fault of Germany & the USSR: the failure of the Intermarium project during the Interwar also opened the door to WW2.

We completely messed up due to our multiple quarrels, lethal unpreparedness & lack of strategic vision.

My latest
1/
tvpworld.com/72448963/the-c… The Intermarium was an ambitious geopolitical concept primarily formulated by Polish statesman Józef Piłsudski.
The plan aimed at creating a confederation of Central and Eastern European states stretching from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Black Sea in the south.
2/

10 reasons why Poland is the best country in the world.
(Thread) 1. Poland offers breathtaking landscapes.
Mainly plains, mountains, forests of all kinds, coasts, lakes, valleys...
It also has the Białowieża Forest, which is the largest remaining primary forest in Europe.

Bloody dictator is a risky job. We didn't take care of Saddam for no reason.

Top Saddam Hussein crimes 🧵👇 1. Halabja Chemical Attack (1988)

Saddam's regime killed thousands of Kurdish civilians using mustard gas and nerve agents.

🚨🚨🚨 If the pro-Russian 🇷🇺 coup in Niger is a success, it is EXTREMELY serious for Europe.

🇫🇷 absolutely did not expect to be ousted from Niger (4th country…). 1/3 of uranium ☢️ used by 🇫🇷 comes from Niger

Congrats Emmanuel. Add Chad, & this will be 🇷🇺’s new colonial empire: Why do I say it is pro-🇷🇺?

In these countries, you need an overlord. That’s how it works.

In 3 countries: coup —> the new junta asks Fr to get out —> asks 🇷🇺 to come in.

They don’t have the organizational structures not to be pro-Fr or pro-Ru. There is nothing in between.

The US-UK-Intermarium special relationship as a way to strengthen NATO and solve the American pivot dilemma

"Give a man a bullet, & he is out of ammo in an hour. Give him the ability to produce a bullet, & he can defend himself for a lifetime"

Thread 1/
tvpworld.com/71218576/the-u… American experts seem to be going in circles between those who want to strengthen the U.S. presence in Asia and those who want to keep a strong American presence in Europe.
2/

Austria 🇦🇹: the Russian Trojan horse blocking the expansion of the Schengen area. Thread 🧵

Austria became one of Russia's closest partners in Europe, despite being part of the EU and its institutions.
1/ Austria's historical ties with Russia date back to centuries, but the post-Cold War period marked a transformation.

This relationship has largely been economic. 🇷🇺 was one of 🇦🇹's key energy providers, with Austrian businesses having significant investments in Russia.
2/

#Breaking: Germany 🇩🇪 spends billions on political foundations to destroy the French 🇫🇷 nuclear industry
1/5
lexpress.fr/environnement/… “Their weapons? Drafting documents with an anti-nuclear narrative, guiding elites through training programs - doctoral scholarships, masterclasses, etc. - visiting and meeting foreign political leaders, forming alliances with certain NGOs or environmentalist parties...”
2/5

What the French elite think of Poland

Frmr French Ambassador to Warsaw Pierre Buhler:
"The foundations of democracy are gradually being eroded."
"Poland idolizes the US."

Geopolitician Nicole Gnesotto:
"Poland has no legitimacy for any leadership.

🧵
open.substack.com/pub/danielfoub… A few passages from a one-hour podcast about Poland, which clearly shows what the French elite think of Poland. The people who took part are very influential, especially His Excellency Pierre Buhler (probably the top French “expert” on Poland). 👇

The new Commission for the Investigation of Russian Influences will probably be seen throughout the West as the model tool for getting rid of the Kremlin's tentacles, which, as we all know, are particularly knotty and difficult to untangle.
▶️danielfoubert.substack.com/p/polands-new-…

🧵 THREAD 1/ 2. There is a Commission of Inquiry into the interference of foreign powers in France, but unlike the Polish Commission, it does not have the power to pass judgment in addition to its investigative powers.

GERMANY HAS DONE NOTHING IN THE SCHRÖDER CASE Northing guarantees Germany’s commitment to European values and to anti-corruption principles.

Mamy do czynienia z tym samym problemem, co reszta Zachodu.
Bogacimy się, ale nasz poziom kultury spada. To tak, jakbyśmy kupowali głupotę. Wczoraj siedziałem w pociągu. Obok mnie grupa dziewczyn - na pierwszy rzut oka „spoko” - ale głośno przeklinających, jak menele.

Jakaś babcia w pewnej chwili im zwróciła uwagę, że nie są same w pociągu. Ale nic z tego, one dalej.

The forgotten alliance that dominated Muscovy.
A History of Lithuanian-Polish Relations 🇱🇹🇵🇱
📰danielfoubert.substack.com/p/lithuania-an…
Thread🧵 1. The 13th century marked a pivotal moment in Lithuanian history with the coronation of King Mindaugas. Recognized by the Pope, Mindaugas converted to Christianity, at least publicly, to protect his lands from the Christian crusaders.

My summary of Morawiecki's Heidelberg speech: 🇵🇱's plan for the EU

He issued a stark warning against a centralized superstate & advocated for an ideological shift, away from centralization and towards democracy as Europe's legitimate power source.
▶️open.substack.com/pub/danielfoub…
1/7 Morawiecki didn't mince words while critiquing the concept of 'federalization' or centralization, presenting it as a top-down stratagem that compromised the decision-making authority of individual nations.
2/7

My latest: Monsieur Macron's presidential consulting business

We are dealing with the capture of the French state by private and foreign interests of all kinds.
1/5
▶️open.substack.com/pub/danielfoub… Macron completed his education at the École Nationale d'Administration (ENA).
This school teaches you to have the memory of a computer and to think the same as all the illustrious people who graduated there.
2/5

Poland did not surrender to Germany and continued the fight after 1939.

The Polish forces in the West numbed ~200K soldiers and the Home Army comprised around 400K members, making it the largest resistance movement in occupied Europe.

🧵 Thread 1. The 1st Polish Armoured Division, under the command of General Stanisław Maczek, fought alongside French troops in the defense of France against the German invasion.
Many of these soldiers subsequently evacuated to the UK to continue the fight after France's capitulation.