Yvette Cooper, foreign secretaryYvette Cooper issued a bleak warning about the state of the world by claiming the “Cold War peace dividend…has gone”.The foreign secretary’s words come after the UK and its European allies claimed they had evidence Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was killed by the Kremlin state with lethal frog toxins, while in a Russian prison.Speaking to the BBC’sLaura Kuenssberg, Cooper said Navalny’s death shows the “willingness by the Russian regime to use these lethal toxins against their own citizens” and proves Russian aggression will continue.Speaking from the Munich Security Conference, she said: “We had hoped after the Cold War that threat to Europe, to UK security, would go away. It hasn’t. It is back.”She said that the “Cold War peace dividend… has gone, and we need to be ready for Russian aggression continuing towards Europe”.Cooper warned that Britain needs to be ready to respond to that aggression which could include hybrid threats and sabotage.The foreign secretary said the UK “continues to look at co-ordinated action, including increasing sanctions on the Russian regime” to punish Moscow for the killing of Navalny.The Kremlin has rejected the claims, calling it a “planted story” and “nonsense about a frog”.The UK announced its findings with France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands at the Munich summit amid wider concerns about Russian aggression against Ukraine and Europe as a whole.The US secretary of state Marco Rubio told reporters that the findings were “troubling” and “we don’t have any reason to question it.”But when asked why the US did not join the five countries in making a statement, he said: “Those countries came to that conclusion. They coordinated that… Doesn’t mean we disagree on the outcome.”America has been withdrawing from western alliances during Donald Trump’s second term.The president has pushed Nato allies to increase their own defence spending, telling them they cannot rely on the US for so much support.He’s also sparked fears about his commitment to Ukraine by trying to get a peace deal as quickly as possible – even if that means rewarding Russian aggression.Rubio notably did not attend a key meeting in Munich about Ukraine due to scheduling conflicts, according to reports.Cooper also admitted to Sky News that it’s clear the US has “shifted its focus”.But the cabinet minister added: “That Nato alliance is still immensely strong and important, and the transatlantic partnership is still very strong and important for our security.“However, they are changing their focus and they are no longer going to be funding so much of Europe’s security, as the US did in the past.“And that means that Europe has to step up to the plate and the UK is part of that.”She said Nato still really matters but “we have to use them differently” in a world where China is on the rise and there is much more “protectionism, use of tariffs or economic coercion”.Related…Trump Insists Putin Kept To His 7-Day Ceasefire Promise Despite Flurry Of Ukraine AttacksZelenskyy Has A Theory As To Why Trump Is In Such A Hurry To End Ukraine WarPutin Aide Accuses Trump Of Breaching ‘Anchorage Agreement’ Over Ukraine HuffPost UK – Athena2 – All Entries (Public) Read More