Make Russia our ally
From George Bathurst Sir: Sucking up to Russia is exactly what we must do ('Why we must not appease the Kremlin', 11 September). Whatever Simon Heifer thinks, they are surely no worse than the last time they were our allies when Stalin sided with us against Hitler. Despite the difficulties of conducting business in Russia, many British businessmen seem to find it easier to do so there than in parts of the EU. So is Russia really any more of a 'gangster state' than Italy or Belgium? Also, given the choice today between France/Germany or Russia for a military ally, I'd choose Russia any day. The Nato treaty isn't worth the paper it's written on as you can be sure that most of our neighbours would only ever come to our aid if it was in their interests to do so. The Belgians, for example, wouldn't even sell us artillery rounds in the first Iraq war, and in the second France vetoed even defensive measures for fellow member Turkey — both in blatant breach of treaty obligations. By contrast, Russians keep their word, they've at least got a proper army (whatever its faults) and they're not cowards.
Arab extremists are using Islam to fight a war of imperial expansion against the rest of the world. Amazing as it seems, victory for them is not impossible. The colonisation of Kosovo was completed in 1999 and France will be a Muslim state by 2030 on current birth trends. Sudan, Nigeria, Palestine, Chechnya, Kashmir, Nepal, Malaysia, etc., remain active, literal battlegrounds. We do not have the luxury of fighting alone unsullied by what Simon Hefter clearly thinks of as inferior countries. We must break the old habits of the Cold War and recognise new realities. We must combine our efforts with not only Russia but also India, and together we can avoid the genocide and human misery that invariably accompanies any expansion of Arab extremism.
George Bathurst
Sheffield
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