Eight Years

Yesterday marked eight years since 298 people were killed when Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine. Investigators found it was hit by a Russian-made Buk missile from rebel-held territory in the Donbas region.

Despite overwhelming evidence, Moscow has always denied being involved. Though at the time, Russian TV triumphantly reported about the downing of an aircraft over the occupied areas in Donetsk region, east Ukraine. Back then, they assumed it was a Ukrainian military cargo aircraft and not MH17.

It is mind-blowing that the agreement to build Nord Stream 2 was signed in June 2015 - a year after Russia launched a war in Europe and downed a passenger plane. Instead of diversifying energy imports, Angela Merkel, with the backing of the European Union, gave Vladimir Putin the power the blackmail Europe.

Now, Russia is reinforcing its defensive positions across the areas it occupies in southern Ukraine, to the point where the Ukrainian Post Office is having to look at opening branches in Poland to get mail to all the displaced persons.

The recent flurry of activity, in the dying days of Boris Johnson’s reign as Prime Minister, to secure the UK’s power security is too little, too late. Independence will not be achieved till around 2030. Happily, we are less vulnerable than the EU, but could still face gas shortages and power cuts this winter. Carrie Antoinette and her “green” dogma also have a lot to answer for.

One wonders what the situation might be like now if the EU didn’t have one arm behind its back? Possibly, it might have exceeded its current, miserable level of sanctions. History should have taught its leaders that one nation should never be reliant on another.

Eight years it will take the UK to resume fuel independence. Eight years the EU have had since the warnings of 2014. Hold that thought.

Martin Day - Party Secretary