We must aim for a Kosovan protectorate
Sixty years on some say that what is happening in Kosovo is none of our business either. They are wrong too. In September and December last year I visited Kosovo and saw families, old men, women and...
View ArticleThe next domino is about to go
Within weeks we may be plunged into yet another Balkan crisis Kosovo: special report Most of Europe seem to think so. But they are about to be rudely re-awakened. History might say we won the Kosovo...
View Article'After the conflict, a bright dawn for the Democrats'
We have now completed, with the leadership and residential elections, all the difficult processes in the creation of our new party and can look forward to getting back to politics with more confidence...
View ArticlePaddy Ashdown on a future Afghan government
The Northern Allliance should not be given control of Afghanistan and Pakistan must not expect a vetoNeither the first wave of bombs nor the first air drops of aid will, I suspect, have had very much...
View ArticlePaddy Ashdown: Despite Iraq, we must still be ready to intervene elsewhere
As a new crisis brings misery to Chad, memories of past failures should now strengthen our resolve to be the agents of peaceThat may be a good thing if it leads to a renewed understanding of the...
View ArticlePaddy Ashdown: When I look to the future in Iraq, I start by studying the past
The tragedy is that the military invasion was not a failure. It was a success. But what happened afterwards has been a lesson in how to make a mess of the peace that follows. It didn't have to be like...
View ArticlePaddy Ashdown: My vote is for Clegg
The Lib Dems need a leader of substance and conviction who thrives in an age of 24-hour newsThe Liberal Democrats have reached a critical point in their development. In the postwar years, the task...
View ArticleWhat Baghdad can learn from Bosnia
Paddy Ashdown has a better idea than most of how to rebuild Iraq - he has already done it in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Here he explains why the first priority is to restore the rule of lawThat is natural....
View ArticleWe are on the brink of failure in Afghanistan. This is our last chance | Nick...
Unless Obama and Brown tear up the current strategy, more lives will be needlessly lost and defeat is inevitableThe crucial question on Afghanistan today is not whether this war is important. It is. It...
View ArticleLearn Mandarin Chinese | Chinese whispers
The culture and economy of the People's Republic are on the rise. If you want to master its language, you need a good ear and a willingness to mimicThe lingua franca of modern China is not actually...
View ArticleChild poverty shames the UK – so use the budget to invest in our young |...
David Cameron should live up to his promise to close the inequality gap between the poorest children and the restTaking significant steps towards ending child poverty has proved challenging for all...
View ArticleSomalia's 'children's famine' has been ignored | Paddy Ashdown
This famine hasn't happened overnight, but it has been reduced to a footnote in the media's eyes by more sensational eventsThe problem when a child is dying from starvation is that they can't wait....
View ArticleBusinesses must take the initiative in dealing with disaster | Lord Ashdown
Corporate investment in the resilience of developing countries makes sense on economic as well as humanitarian groundsYou don't have to look further than the front pages of our newspapers to see that...
View ArticleLibya's path to democracy | Paddy Ashdown
Libyan elections can wait. First the country should establish the rule of law and a constitutionIf there is one thing more fraught, more attended by failure and more difficult to do than fighting a...
View Article'We have tipped 38 years of foreign policy down the drain' | Paddy Ashdown
David Cameron has isolated us in Europe and diminished us in Washington's eyesWhen Hugh Gaitskell sat down after making his "end of a thousand years of history" speech against joining Europe at the...
View ArticleWhat did Margaret Thatcher do for Britain? Panel verdict | The panel
David Owen, David Mellor, Roy Hattersley, Virginia Bottomley, Paul Boateng, Paddy Ashdown, David Blunkett and John Redwood consider the legacy of the former prime minister, who has died of a stroke at...
View ArticleThe Margaret Thatcher I knew: 20 personal insights
What was the former prime minister really like to work with and against, to live with and to help dress? Those who knew her best remember Continue reading...
View ArticleBritain's best defence to the terror threat is international action
Government talk of returning jihadis and 'western values' won't keep us safe. We need a coordinated international strategy to defeat those who threaten usIt is always easy to persuade frightened people...
View ArticleCameron’s offer of 20,000 Syrian refugees over five years is derisory | Paddy...
Nothing shows the prime minister’s tone deafness to the urgency of this situation better than this pathetic planDavid Cameron has highly developed skills in the art of following where he should be...
View ArticleIf British planes fly in Syria it will be for political, not military,...
We can achieve little with high explosive alone – but we can outflank Putin with diplomacyOn the face of it – and to the west’s excruciating embarrassment – Vladimir Putin is walking away with all the...
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