In the short-term, there is little sensible to be said about the tragedy in Ukraine. The range of possible outcomes is just too wide. But longer-term, we do know that sovereignty has limits. Even for a seemingly well-resourced country with nuclear weapons and a formidable military might, the freedom to act is finite. Over sixty years ago a popular and experienced UK Prime Minister destroyed his career and plunged his country into crisis with a reckless risk which backfired spectacularly. While the retreat from Empire was never likely to be smooth, the stark weakness exposed by the debacle of Suez…

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