menu_open Columnists
Simon Tisdall

Simon Tisdall

The Guardian

We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

The first lesson of war is ‘know your enemy’ – and Britain’s enemy now is Donald Trump

The first lesson of war is ‘know your enemy’ – and Britain’s enemy now is Donald Trump

Nine days in, the conduct of the unjustified, illegal US-Israel war against Iran grows ever-more disproportionate, dishonourable and deranged. The...

sunday 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

A world on edge as Trump bombs Iran and triggers war in the Middle East. There was no need for this

A world on edge as Trump bombs Iran and triggers war in the Middle East. There was no need for this

They never learn. Once again, a bellicose US president has unleashed overwhelming military firepower to force a sovereign nation to its knees. Once...

28.02.2026 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Ukraine is the biggest and most consequential of all the American betrayals

Viewed from Europe, the US’s failure to defend the people of Ukraine against Russian aggression is the greatest and most consequential of a host of...

21.02.2026 2000

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

China is leading the charge to nuclear Armageddon – and Starmer barely noticed

01.02.2026 30

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

The global rule of law is not collapsing – Trump is the lone problem and he can be defeated

25.01.2026 100

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Iran cannot be bombed into democracy. But it can be helped to find its way there

18.01.2026 30

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

What unites Greenland, Venezuela and Ukraine? Trump’s immoral lies and Europe’s chronic weakness

11.01.2026 100

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Today an illegal coup in Venezuela, but where next? Donald Trump talks peace but he is a man of war

03.01.2026 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Through the lens of history, Trump’s legacy will be more of a blotch than a Maga masterpiece

28.12.2025 100

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

China has set a bear trap for Keir Starmer – and our naive PM is walking straight into it

21.12.2025 40

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Welcome to our age of impunity – where the ICC prosecuting atrocities is a rare feat

14.12.2025 70

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Putin should have accepted Trump’s deal. Now Russia’s collapsing economy could lead to his downfall

07.12.2025 200

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

China is bearing down on Taiwan – enabled by Trump’s weakness and vacillation

30.11.2025 30

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Who can tame Trump? An unlikely candidate is emerging: the Catholic church

23.11.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

The US is now a rogue state - look at its extrajudicial killings off Venezuela’s coast

16.11.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Does Trump truly care about Nigerian Christians? Of course not – he just knows faith sells

09.11.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

President JD Vance or Marco Rubio? We’re seeing the first signs of the battle over Trump’s succession

02.11.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

The war in Gaza is supposed to be over. But be warned: without truth and justice, it will never truly end

26.10.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Xi Jinping is preparing to go toe to toe with Donald Trump – and there will only be one winner

19.10.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

France is not alone in its crisis of political faith – belief in a democratic world is vanishing

12.10.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump’s bullying of Latin America isn’t part of any plan – he doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing

05.10.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump and Putin are carrying out a pincer movement on Europe’s democracies. Suddenly, it all feels a bit 1939

28.09.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Look to Myanmar for a terrifying vision of a world where authoritarians have unfettered power

21.09.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump is no ‘strongman’ when it comes to Russia or Israel. If other democracies don’t step up, anarchy awaits

14.09.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

One by one, leaders learn that grovelling to Trump leads to disaster. When will it dawn on Starmer?

07.09.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump’s belligerence is pushing Xi, Putin and Kim together – and tearing the old world order apart

03.09.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

As the world hurtles ever closer to nuclear oblivion, where is the opposition?

10.08.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

The US attacks on Iran have backfired horribly – but a path to peace is still possible

03.08.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Dear Keir Starmer, stop cosying up to Donald Trump – or he’ll drag Britain down with him

26.07.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

From Gaza to Ukraine, peace always seems just out of reach – and the reason isn’t only political

20.07.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

What if Ukraine falls? This is no longer a hypothetical question – and it must be answered urgently

13.07.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

The UN is our best defence against a third world war. As Trump wields the axe, who will fight to save it?

06.07.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Don’t count on the Iran-Israel ceasefire lasting. What Netanyahu really wants is a forever war

29.06.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

No matter what Trump says, the US has gone to war – and there will be profound and lasting consequences

22.06.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump, Netanyahu and Khamenei – three angry old men who could get us all killed

15.06.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Britain has escalated the global nuclear arms race – and is bringing us closer to armageddon

08.06.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump doesn’t know how to deal with China. His cowardice only makes a war with Taiwan more likely

01.06.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump refuses to accept that for Netanyahu and Putin forever war is the only option

25.05.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Will we ever see despots like Putin in court? It’s unlikely – and that’s the west’s fault too

18.05.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump thinks he is shaping the Middle East. Instead, it’s Gulf states that will dictate US foreign policy

11.05.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

It’s right to remember the dead of 1939-45. But keep the anger about current wars too

04.05.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Tyrants like Trump always fall – and we can already predict how he will be dethroned

27.04.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Britain has been paying a high price for Uncle Sam’s craziness. It’s time to turn to Europe

29.03.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Donald Trump’s imperial presidency is a throwback to a greedier, pernicious age

Donald Trump’s imperial presidency is a tawdry, threadbare affair. The emperor has no clothes to cloak his counterfeit rule. Lacking crown and...

23.03.2025 20

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Netanyahu will never accept peace. Where will his perpetual war lead next?

18.03.2025 9

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

The honeymoon is over for Trump, whose every unwitting misstep brings chaos and strife

15.03.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Being Putin’s stooge won’t win Trump a peace prize. The Order of Lenin, though, is in the bag

08.03.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

Trump has utterly changed the rules of engagement. World leaders must learn this – and quickly

03.03.2025 5

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

With Nato adrift and Brussels snubbed, is the UK key to Europe’s response to Trump?

01.03.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall

From saviour to Judas… How Trump’s pivot on Russia also endangers his own country

22.02.2025 10

The Guardian

Simon Tisdall