As we remember the bravery of men and women during D Day 1944, let us not forget those who at this present time are putting their lives on the line for our continuing, current freedom. A senior military source said that a Nato-led force was likely to have to provide close air support, casualty evacuation and logistics to the Afghan National Army beyond the official draw-down in December 2014. The source suggested Britain’s military involvement after the draw-down was likely to be far more significant than previously thought. Ministers have previously only announced the involvement of about 100 British soldiers in training Afghan officers at a military academy known as ‘Sandhurst in the sands’. Mr Cameron acknowledged on Saturday that Britain was committed to supporting the Afghan army financially ‘long after’ 2014 and he did not rule out offering other forms of support.

The Ebola virus, which has killed more than 670 people in West Africa, poses a threat to the UK, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has told the BBC. He said he would chair an emergency Cobra meeting on the issue later. Mr Hammond said no Britons had been affected so far and there were no cases in the UK, but the government was viewing the outbreak very seriously. Earlier this month Public Health England issued an alert to UK doctors to be aware of Ebola's symptoms. Several West African airlines have now stopped flying to Liberia and Sierra Leone amid concerns about the spread of the disease to those countries from Guinea. The move by airlines comes after an infected American man of Liberian descent was found to have flown from Liberia to Nigeria last week. He developed symptoms during the flight.

The recovered bodies and flight recorders of Malaysia Flight 17 have been turned over to the proper authorities, but the propaganda wars continue. Ukrainian government officials blame Russia for a complicit role in the shooting down of the commercial flight, while Russia blames Ukraine. This unusual war in Eastern Ukraine is also having other consequences: the evangelical community is being targeted. President of Russian Ministries Sergey Rakhuba says, ‘They believe that evangelical churches are their enemies. In one of the towns, they even raised the Orthodox flag and said they would fight any heretic, any protestant, anyone who represents any western immoral values.’ Many evangelicals have been attacked, including four men who were killed a few weeks ago. Rakhuba says a childhood friend was targeted on Monday when Russian Separatists stopped his car in Donetsk. Fortunately, Ukrainian forces trying to regain control of Donetsk began engaging the separatists and Rakhuba’s friend was able to get away.

To understand why Vladimir Putin is willing to take the kinds of risks that produced the destruction of a civilian airliner, and why the US and its allies should see his power play as an effort to alter not just the arc of Ukraine but all of Europe it is necessary to look at the tale of two countries. Poland, integrated into Western economy and grew twice as fast as Ukraine. Many think this contrast scared Mr. Putin particularly when Ukraine, emulating Poland, began to pivot westward earlier this year. To allow the Ukrainian turn to happen would have been the end of any near-term dreams of rebuilding a Russian empire. The goal of re-creating a Russian sphere of influence collided head-on with the spread of a Westernized EU model for Europe seeping toward Russia's doorstep. Mr. Putin faced a historic choice: swim with the tide or try to turn it. He chose the latter.