Thousands of European troops are taking part in military exercises in Poland in the first deployment of the so-called “coalition of the willing”. The brainchild of Keir Starmer and France’s President Emmanuel Macron, the 35-nation group was established in March last year “to strengthen support for Ukraine and put economic and diplomatic pressure on Russia”, said the UK Ministry of Defence.

Who is participating?
Around 2,800 military personnel from 10 European nations – Belgium, Estonia, Germany, France, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the UK – make up the Multinational Force-Ukraine, the military component of the coalition. They are taking part in the war-game rehearsal, named Exercise Koalicja (Polish for coalition), in Poland from today until 22 November.

About 300 British personnel are participating, and RAF Typhoons will simulate how they would reassure commercial air travel once Ukraine’s skies reopen. Anglo-French led, with an HQ rotating between London and Paris, this “is not a peacekeeping or a ceasefire-monitoring force, nor is it connected to Nato”, said the MoD. The US will not be part of the mission, nor will the Multinational Force-Ukraine rely on US weapons or technology such as Elon Musk’s Starlink, an unnamed official told The Times.

What will they be doing?
The two-week military exercise will test the ability of this new alliance to deploy in Ukraine once the fighting between Kyiv and Russia ends. This is a “key milestone” that “will serve as a concrete demonstration of the MNF-U’s ability to be deployed as soon as hostilities have ended”, France’s General Armel Dirou, who will co-lead the exercise alongside Britain’s Lieutenant General Tom Bateman, told France 24.

What will the force look like?
The new force is “not designed for offensive operations”, said Bateman. “Its purpose is to provide reassurance and support the regeneration of Ukraine’s armed forces, strengthening their ability to deter and, if necessary, defend against future Russian aggression.” Russia has already voiced opposition to foreign troops being stationed in Ukraine, and President Vladimir Putin last year said they would be “legitimate targets”. Western officials have “declined to spell out the rules of engagement if any international troops were to be attacked in Ukraine”, said the BBC, but “they say the force would be able to defend itself”.

Religion in the US has long been seen as the “preserve of the right, with Republicans traditionally viewed as the party of Christian values”, said The Telegraph. But significant wins in the midterms for religious Democrats, such as James Talarico (pictured above) in Texas, has set up faith as a new “political battleground” in the lead-up to the 2028 presidential election.

‘Inclusive’ Christianity
Scripture was the “rallying cry” of the left in these midterms, said The New York Times. References to Matthew 25 – where Jesus speaks of caring for the vulnerable – were a “favourite” among Democrats looking to “earn trust” from their state or district’s more moderate Christian voters. This religious messaging stopped them being labelled as “godless”, as well as appealing “to people frustrated with the cost of living”, the war in Iran, and divisions over immigration and healthcare. It was an “inclusive”, progressive push that reaped dividends.

Politicians on the Christian left have been trying to break through for a long while, “but were mostly drowned out in primaries before they came close to reaching the national stage”, said Rolling Stone. But then, in just a few years of “profound corruption” and “incompetence”, Donald Trump, who once enjoyed support from many with a strong Christian faith, “accomplished what otherwise may have taken generations”: he “opened a door for the religious left to make incredible inroads”.

Earning trust of moderates
It may, though, be “too early to say whether this election marks the start of a realignment” among voters of faith, said The Wall Street Journal. For a Democratic Party that’s “long been wary” of mixing religion and politics, these victories by “unapologetically faith-based candidates” certainly mark a change of direction, but the party’s broad support for abortion and transgender rights “still remain unpalatable” to many socially conservative voters.

To be successful in the 2028 presidential election, the Democrats will need to keep winning over moderate Republicans for whom religion is important, said The New York Times. Candidates such as Talarico have shown that their faith and “scriptural fluency” can achieve that. Running on “duty to care for one another”, the core principle of many religions, could just be the party’s “new path to the White House”.

A woman performs the afternoon Asr prayer in a cotton field in northern Afghanistan. Since the ruling Taliban regime imposed a nationwide ban on poppy cultivation in 2022, many farmers have switched to growing crops such as cotton and wheat. 

Atif Aryan / AFP / Getty Images

Tinned food is flying off the shelves as Brits follow advice to keep emergency stockpiles in case of extreme weather, conflicts or cyberattacks.  Here are some of the tastiest and most useful options to add to your shopping list.

Beans
Tinned beans are “already cooked, which is a bonus”, and can be eaten warm or cold, said The Telegraph. They’re rich in fibre, magnesium, vitamins and iron, and are also a good secondary protein source. “They’re filling too.”

Tomatoes
Tinned tomatoes are “essentials” that make it “incredibly easy” to turn other ingredients into a “proper meal”, nutritionist Gabriela Peacock told Metro.

Fruit
Tinned fruit is a “good option” to ensure “you’re going to get vitamin C” even if fresh produce runs low, said The Telegraph. From prunes to mandarin oranges, go for tinned fruits in juice to get the most nutrients and vitamins. 

Fish
Tinned fish can have a shelf-life of at least two years and is packed with essential protein, particularly tuna and sardines. As an added bonus, tinned fish is in “culinary vogue” right now, said The Times. 

What the AI doomsters get wrong
Wolfgang Munchau on UnHerd
“Europe still doesn’t get AI,” writes financial journalist Wolfgang Munchau. We’ve “sidelined ourselves by enacting a raft of disastrous anti-tech regulation” that’s created a “massive and unbridgeable” gap from the US and China. European economists who think “AI is just another bubble” have “no idea what it does and how it works”. They don’t see what a “substantial and measurable” impact it will have on productivity and the labour market. This isn’t just “another investment fad”; “this time, it really is different”.

Farage’s Reform lieutenants are trading dog whistles for foghorns
Sonia Sodha in The i Paper
There’s a growing “whiff of nastiness” about Reform, writes Sonia Sodha. The party has drawn a clear dividing line with the Conservatives on race, with an ally of Nigel Farage even describing Kemi Badenoch as a “Nigerian scammer”. This “strategy of flirting with ethnonationalism” is driven by the threat from Restore Britain and “the hard-right online ecosystem”, and some in Reform’s ranks “enthusiastically welcome” it. But it won’t win more votes and will “encourage more hostility towards non-white communities”. Reform is “playing a dangerous game”.

Britain shouldn’t be ashamed of its tarts
Daniel Hardaker in The Telegraph
Was there ever a “more successful culinary invasion than the pastel de nata”? writes Daniel Hardaker. The “flaky little Portuguese” pastry has “pushed” the British custard tart, “served up at the coronation banquet of Henry IV” in 1399, “to the margins”; “even Greggs stopped making them”. Yet while it’s not as “artisanal” and “Instagrammable”, our “native tart” has a “larger custard to pastry ratio” than its Portuguese cousin. Both should “stand proudly alongside” each other in our bakeries.