Both Lawrence Freedman and Bruno Maçães (Cover Story and World View, 21 February) invited a sobering consideration of the new realities both Nato and Europe might face should the US abandon them. But if the Trump administration does turn its back on Nato and Europe, it will do so at the geopolitical peril of America itself. At a minimum, the US will either have to relinquish, or at least face restricted access to: deep-water ports in the Mediterranean, foremost among which are the bases in Naples and Crete; air bases in Ramstein and RAF Akrotiri; and the Keflavik base in Iceland. On this point, Trump would do well to remember that Putin’s interests and aspirations in the Arctic Circle supersede those of Russia’s relations with the US. And that would be before countenancing the loss of Turkey as an ally: a keystone state in Middle Eastern and Eurasian geopolitics. Perhaps President Trump should ask not what Nato and Europe can do for the US – this should be obvious – but what the US can do for Europe.
Jordan Scott, Newcastle
Prison break
It was interesting to read David Gauke’s piece on the prison crisis (Inside Westminster, 21 February). Gauke says “sentencing policy can be more focused on reducing crime” without mentioning that focusing on reducing poverty will directly impact crime levels. This is something that perpetually goes unmentioned by governments. What’s more, tackling poverty will have the added benefit of reducing pressure on the NHS.
I also believe that, rather than sending people convicted of possession of drugs to prison (where drugs are more easily available than on the streets), they should instead be committed to secure rehabilitation hospitals for treatment on open-ended sentences. They can then be released after being able to demonstrate they have been clear of their addiction for a period set by medical professionals. Drug addicts are victims of crime too: they are often vulnerable, exploited by dealers intentionally getting them hooked, frequently while still children. Again, drug use and addiction correlate strongly with poverty. Do we see a pattern here?
Richard Sharpe, Isle of Wight
Costly advice
Alison Phillips correctly urges us to “not take any lessons in freedom of expression from JD Vance” (Media Notebook, 21 February). Her point is driven home by Jill Filipovic’s article about abortion in the US (Comment, 21 February), where free speech in the simple form of passing on information about abortion is being made illegal. To punish anyone – “a doctor, a friend, an Uber driver” – with crushing penalties for telling a woman, say, how to obtain abortion pills reminds me of Putin’s decision to make illegal any reference to the “war” in Ukraine.
Dick Brown, Buxted, East Sussex
Teaching success
Some of the responses to Hannah Barnes’s interview with Katharine Birbalsingh (Correspondence, 21 February) continue to parrot the tired and nonsensical idea that there is a dichotomy between examination results and children’s well-being and mental health. One cannot lament the enormous physical and mental health detriments of low wages, insecure housing and lack of educational opportunities while at the same time denouncing school leaders for equipping their students with the qualifications to avoid such misery.
For the most disadvantaged children, exam results are often the sole driver of social mobility and future success: these children do not need the same exam results to enter universities, apprenticeships and work as their wealthier peers; they need results that are significantly better. I may disagree with Birbalsingh on much, but as a fellow school leader in a deprived area, she is absolutely right about our primary responsibility to the children in our care.
Ben Forward, Wingham, Kent
Lost in translation
I am very pleased that Hannah Barnes has joined the ranks of those of us who admire Elena Ferrante’s splendid Neapolitan Quartet (Out of the Ordinary, 21 February). However, I am disappointed with her assessment that the books are fundamentally about female friendship.
Of course, this is a hugely important feature of the collection, as the relationship between Elena and Lila navigates decades of life together and separately, but their story is so much more than that. Elena and Lila are not just friends but a symbiotic partnership, separate aspects of an inextricable whole. The fluctuations between who is more male and who is more female, who more emotional and who more practical, who more productive and who more receptive, are presented with great delicacy, but also with great power.
In this respect, the translation of “L’amica Geniale” to My Brilliant Friend rather loses the substance, strangeness, and resonance in the Italian’s suggestion of “genius” as spirit and essence; not only brilliance but something more profound and ancient.
The Neapolitan Quartet is a work that shows us the entire human condition, especially of and through women, in a way that few novels do.
Natasha Grange, Exeter
So Hannah Barnes “genuinely has no idea how some men manage to fill the time when out together” without asking about each other’s partners or children. I go out once a week with a few male friends: I can assure her that putting the world (and our local council) to rights leaves us no time for other topics.
James Simister, Brighton
Whole lotta love for Led Zeppelin
I was interested to read Tracey Thorn’s piece on the Led Zeppelin documentary (Off the Record, 21 February), specifically that they didn’t appeal to her as a child. I’m 65 now and, growing up in rural Mid Wales, I adored Led Zeppelin and how the music made me feel. This was mostly helped by the local hippie DJ, a gentle soul, who played joy-filled rock evenings in whatever venue he could find. I just danced and danced and danced to Led Zeppelin – anything and everything. The film was intriguing, not least because of some of the band’s clever early tactics: making an album and then selling it to a record label. Nifty. I still adore Robert Plant for continuing his becoming journey. Becoming never ends.
Tracy Watterson, Sheffield
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This article appears in the 26 Feb 2025 issue of the New Statesman, Britain in Trump’s World