June 8, 2026

 Monday. Left around 9:30. Blacksmith. Overcast, mild, light to moderate winds out of the south. Groenekan to Groenedijk. In the water, a couple of swans with eight chicks, some white, some gray. Korssesteeg with lots of campers, now also behind one of the farms--those with the AI-generated protest signs--that soon may have to close. How it may be in a few years: new areas of managed nature preserve, perhaps also recreation and camping. And maybe that a different type of farm may still be there too. Egelshoek to Tienhoven. The oasis of the Tienhovensch kanaal. Birdsong, grasses, weeds, and lots of color. Just a few people. Tienhoven to Nedereindseweg. Before Molenhoek nettles with purple flowers. Then the trail around the lake to the Gageldijk (a brown cow with a young calf). Klopdijk and the detour around Zuylenstede back into town and Møs. In the paper, an analysis underlining the persisting urgency for Europe to assist Ukraine, specifically in the area of anti-ballistic missile defense. It's not just that the Russian president is down to the kind of terror attacks we've seen frequently in recent months, it's also that Russia is increasing its production of cruise and ballistic missiles, making the terror option even more lethal for Ukrainians than it has been so far. Ukraine is getting better at hitting those production facilities, but in the area of defense, it can use all the help it can get, for example the French-Italian SMAP/T system, European help for the development of its own missile-defense system, and also still advocacy in Washington for the sale of Patriot systems to Europe on Kiyv's behalf. Success on the latter is a long shot, given the hole the American president has dug for himself in the Middle East. Let's hope that the other things were at the top of the agenda of discussions between the leaders Britain, Germany, France, and Ukraine this past weekend. As the analysis also emphasized, it's not just for Ukraine's sake that one would redouble these efforts, it's very much in the interest of the rest of Europe. More than ever, Ukraine's and Europe's security interests are intertwined.