Nick Watts

Author of 'Ridgeway', freelance journalist; write on defence & security matters.

[Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 @DefenceHQ]

Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine – 04 August 2026.

Find out more about Defence Intelligence's use of language: https://t.co/LD3hsOHHYW

#StandWithUkraine

[Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський @ZelenskyyUa]

Today, many were shocked by yet another video of the drone “safari” Russians are carrying out against civilians in Kherson. A Russian drone deliberately hunted down a man selling vegetables and detonated right next to him. The Russians even admitted to the crime, showing zero regret and openly boasting about tormenting people. The man was wounded in the blast. Every single day, ordinary people in Kherson face these Russian "safaris."

The world must see this. It must see every piece of evidence that Russia has gone mad and that its soldiers take pleasure in killing and abusing civilians. Without pressure on Russia, the dismantling of its capacity for aggression, and real security guarantees, it is simply impossible to imagine the world being able to coexist with this evil. We must remain resolute in defending life. We must act and support life in ways that force Russia to seriously think about peace rather than expanding the range of its drones.

This is not just about Ukraine. Russia’s campaign against human life must be stopped here in Ukraine before it spreads further. Finland and Kazakhstan, the Baltic states and Poland, the countries of the South Caucasus, Romania, and Moldova—all should work together to ensure real security guarantees and bring Russia’s war to an end. Peace is needed, which requires cooperation among everyone in the world who truly values peace. Thank you to everyone standing with Ukraine!

[William Hague @WilliamJHague]

The tragedy at Ceuta is a warning the West cannot ignore.

However high we build our walls, once we have to defend them we are constantly losing.

We must send a strong signal that illegal migration will not work 👇

https://t.co/IowQdlJQHb

[Al Carns @AlistairCarns]

It's amateur hour but that's an insult to amateurs. 🙄 who on earth is giving you guys advice?👽

[Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum]

you can pay to be an insider trader

[Matthew Syed @matthewsyed]

Infantino would have got away with it if not for @thetimes and the brilliant reporting of @martynziegler. A free press (and the subscribers who fund it) remains a crucial bulwark against the abuse of power

https://t.co/vswZqlJNYp

[Gabriele Molinelli @Gabriel64869839]

In the DiP as published,

- the RAF gets virtually all of its wishes fullfilled, although most of them in the form of promises for the future. 2030 - 2035, in fact, Air is supposed to get 70 billions.
The majority of the DiP money goes straight to TEMPEST; it gets money for Typhoon, and money on top for a whole new CCA development attempt.

It gets promised it'll expand to field Long Range ground based air and missile defence batteries after 2030, even.

It de facto gets to rob the Navy of the last planned tranche of carrier-capable F-35Bs (which will become a squadron of F-35A instead justified with the nuclear mission, mark my word ahead of the promised Autumn combat air strategy refresh. The 27 jets in the UK's Tranche 2 will all be As with the brilliant result that there will be, if we are EXTREMELY lucky, a single F-35A "combat" Sqn, a F-35A OCU and 2 - 3 Sqns of F-35B (assuming the planned third Sqn still happens somehow, with the Bs taken out of the OCU and without any new airframe, unlike what was planned so far)
Two micro-fleets that will forever struggle to survive and be at each other's throat for funding wherever upgrade paths encounter a divergence due to material differences.

- The Army stands still, quite literally. The ongoing projects (mostly) carry on; purchases of Land Rover replacements and Patria 6x6 get to finally begin before 2030, but that's essentially all there is.

Ground Based Air Defence gets something, but nothing to write home about.

- The Navy gets saddled with an ambitious, but exceptionally risky revolution attempt based on non-existent, shaky technical premises in trying to go from air defence destroyers to a hybrid "something" the effective capability ambitions of which we simply do not know.
It is given a whole 1.3 billion from here to 2030 which is supposed to somehow cover simultaneously:

- the design of the new crewed CCV ship to enter build as soon as possible into the 2030s and supposedly begin enter service in 2035 (yeah, right...)

- The construction of "at least" one Type 91 missile-launching uncrewed escort

- The construction of an unknown number of Type 92 uncrewed ASW "sloops"

- The construction of an unknown number of Type 93 extra-large uncrewed underwater vehicles

Plus a handful of hundred millions to continue work on PROTEUS and mature a CCA that can operate from the carriers (it remains completely unclear if the RAF is at least being made to ensure their own CCA plans match with that or if they get to do completely their own thing)

This is the reality of it.

The RAF gets virtually zero risks in its portfolio as it gets to pursue drones on top, not in place of, everything else it could possibly want.

The Navy gets saddled with 100% of the risk and tasked with somehow realizing things not even the US Navy is actually close to making;
It also gets 4 smaller, less capable vessels to replace the entire amphibious fleet plus ARGUS.

The Army mostly stays essentially as is, with a hundred millions to throw at UGV experiments and a few hundred million more for assorted drones via NYX / Land Lethality Pipeline.

[On This Day RN @OnthisdayRN]

9 yrs ago this month, first steel was cut for the RN's first new Type 26 Frigate @HMS_GlasgowRN She remains fitting out on the Clyde & is due to enter service next year in a race with Type 31 @HMSVenturerRN

One will become the first British frigate to commission since 2002

[Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 @DefenceHQ]

The UK has over 30 operations running worldwide and more than 4,500 personnel deployed on them.

Defence Secretary @wesstreeting visited @DefenceOps this week to hear first-hand how the thousands of military personnel and civilians work around the clock to keep our country safe.

[Gate7 @Gate7aviation]

Chapeau bas pour Beatrice Vialle qui s’est posé pour la dernière fois à Paris CDG aux commandes d’un Boeing 777-300 d’Air France après 40 ans de carrière et plus de 17000 heures de vol ✈️ 👩‍✈️
Elle a été la seule femme française et l’une des deux seules au monde à avoir piloté le mythique Concorde.
#AirFrance #Pilote #Concorde

[Dr. Dan Lomas @Sandbagger_01]

BBC News - British man accused of spying on Cyprus RAF base for Iran
https://t.co/o067cIslvx

[Britten-Norman @BrittenNorman]

POWER ON!

First UK-built Islander in almost six decades is out of the hangar at Bembridge and into final preparation for ground testing.

[Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський @ZelenskyyUa]

I accepted the letters of credence of the newly appointed ambassadors of Oman, North Macedonia, the United Arab Emirates, the Netherlands, and France.

I briefed the diplomats on Russia’s strike last night – it involved a lot of ballistic missiles and, unfortunately, casualties. Even as we spoke with the ambassadors, Russia continued striking our cities and communities. In these circumstances, air defense remains our unwavering priority. Everyone who can help – whether with packages of missiles or work on anti-ballistic defense – is directly helping to protect lives. We also discussed bilateral relations between our countries with each of the ambassadors. Thank you for supporting Ukraine!

[caroline wheeler @cazjwheeler]

Exclusive: Officials in Donald Trump’s administration have discussed taking over the site of China’s proposed “mega-embassy” in London for a new US embassy, The i Paper has been told.

It has even been joked that the current US embassy complex at Nine Elms in London could be gifted to the Chinese in exchange for them agreeing to sell the Royal Mint Court site, which occupies a strategically significant location close to the Tower of London.

Sources familiar with the discussions said it has been viewed by some US officials as a rare opportunity to secure one of London’s most valuable diplomatic locations while denying Beijing a major symbolic foothold in the heart of the British capital.

One senior Whitehall source said: “Officials at the highest levels of the US State Department have been discussing this idea for months and love it.”

Another official with high level connections on both sides of the Atlantic, said the idea is being actively discussed in MAGA circles – the Trump-loyal Republican movement – and said it would be seen as a “geopolitical victory” for the US.

The site’s central location is understood to be a source of envy among some American officials, who view it as strategically superior to the US embassy’s current base in Nine Elms, south of the River Thames.

In an interview with Sky News in January, US House Speaker Mike Johnson said the Royal Mint Court site was a “great location for an embassy,” adding: “I wish the US had taken that spot instead of China.
“It does send a certain message – it seems – that China would have such a prominent place and have such a – as they would call it – a mega-embassy and I don’t think that’s a great development from our perspective.”

The development comes as Royal Mint Court Residents’ Association vowed to “fight on” after a High Court challenge against the original planning decision was dismissed. They are now planning to appeal that decision.

Story 👇

https://t.co/3hjhZJQq5p

[Emmanuel Macron @EmmanuelMacron]

La France condamne avec la plus grande fermeté les frappes russes qui ont tué des civils en Ukraine, ainsi que la violation de l’espace aérien polonais. Notre soutien à l’Ukraine et à nos alliés ne faiblira pas, @ZelenskyyUa @donaldtusk. Il en va de notre sécurité collective.

[Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 @DefenceHQ]

We asked Georgia and Aidan, two apprentices in the Dreadnought programme to explain in their own words what it means to work on such an important national endeavour.

Hear about how they made it into their apprenticeships and Dreadnought's impact on local communities.👇

[Kitty Donaldson @kitty_donaldson]

📢NEW: Labour takes five-point poll lead over Reform in new ‘Burnham bounce’

- If repeated at a general election, the results would make Labour comfortably the biggest party but still just shy of an overall majority

- It is the first time in 16 months that any party other than Reform has led a BMG poll

https://t.co/Jlheu2G24n

[Tom Sharpe @TomSharpe134]

@FarvaPrice Many congrats Farva. I always found handing over command a mix of emotions, but relief was always in there! 🤞 for another

[OSINTtechnical @Osinttechnical]

Ukrainian firefighters are heading to France to assist in tackling the massive ongoing wildfires in Bordeaux.

Ukraine rapidly dispatched roughly 70 personnel, 10 fire trucks, and supporting equipment under the EU’s civil protection mechanism.

[Tom Newton Dunn @tnewtondunn]

"What really surprised me about this was who Zelensky chose to back. Losing a commander in chief is unfortunate, losing him and your defence minister strikes me as strategically incompetent, and really damaging at a critical point in the war".

On TG&TJ this week: Patrick on Fedorov vs Syrskyi. What Kyiv's inter-generational power struggle means for the war.

🎧Listen to the full episode here; https://t.co/bJxtgQSc5D