This may pursuance the doubters about UK power:
https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/study-finds-uk-is-second-most-powerful-country-in-the-world/

Well done Lizzie, it was this article that prompted my question to see what the current UK citizens perception and reaction would be to the UK's standing in the world.
As expected the anti-UK factions of society are exactly that. 
Key to global force projection are your fixed aircraft carriers like Gibraltar, Cyprus, Ascension and The Falklands and your mobile aircraft carriers, frigates, submarine and RFA support ships and RAF heavy lift capacity. We are one of the few countries with logistic support systems that can do this out of area forces support. Russia and China who both currently have formidable local defense forces but would struggle to fight beyond their own back yard as we have seen with Russia in Syria. China over the next 10 years will have developed this sort of capacity, Russia can't and won't.
China has already done it Rods in Africa and is working its way across the Far East to the point that Indonesia has all but put its hands up the new kids on the block from Beijing 
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2015/05/150509084913175.html
Your best mate in Moscow has setup permanently whether we like it or not in Syria and is rapidly making ground in Cyprus to the point that Paphos is a military airbase in all but name 
And that's not including his softly softly campaign to claim back those countries which Moscow lost in the 90's 
Don't understand that point at all. Cyprus is the Republic of Cyprus, with one half in Greek hands, the other half in Turkish hands since their invasion of the island. The Republic of Cyprus was created after the island gained it's independence from Britain in 1960, and has since become part of the EU and the Eurozone. Hence it sees it future as part of Europe, not a part of a newly expanded Russia. The people have no connection with Russia or China, so would not be inclined to go in that direction. Indeed, although the politics in Cyprus have been troubled, they want the benefit of European defence, including having a British base there.
I am sure that if Russia made any moves towards Cyprus, not only would the people of the island have something to say, but so would the EU, Britain, and the UN. Cyprus is a key island in the Mediterranean, as is Malta, in terms of a military base which would never be handed over easily to Russia or China. 
Might sound like Rods here
but Russian mafia has had a big say in the Greek side of Cyprus for a good 10 years that I know of 
Putin negotiated a deal with the Greek Cypriot government quite a few years ago to give them exclusive use to a section of Paphos airport so they can fly in military aircraft (of the transport kind
) at will.
Personally, I believe Vlad the Bad has taken a leaf out of China's book and is playing the softly softly game in Cyprus.
Not like they has never been a soviet presence on the island of course 
There was some pretty strong rumours going around military personnel during the 80's about the owner of a certain kebab shop outside the gates of Raf Akrotiri

Cyprus is the Russian mafia's country of choice for dodgy money deposits where they have a very favourable Soviet era Russia-Cyprus double taxation treaty. This was also why Merkel insisted on a bank deposit bail-in during their banking crisis. Another two massive money laundering countries are the UK and US. If you want to launder $1000 in either of the countries, you will have to provide proof of address, id etc. and have problems. However, if you want to launder $10m there are plenty of bankers, solicitors, accountants, estate agent or businesses that for the right fees are happy to help.

Ah, right. So it is all about fraudulent banking practices? Most all western countries are guilty of that one. Don't think it will lead to the take over of countries though. Mind you, western bankers, including those in Britain, bank rolled the Nazis throughout WW2 so I suppose anything is possible!

It actually helps keep the countries safe as the last thing those at the top want is to lose the offshore financial firewall and independent judicial system between their ill gotten gains and the host state.

This is why there is so much Russian (Putin) lobbying against the Magnitsky Act as it endangers their offshore wealth especially Putin's alleged $200bn invested around the world. Where the USSR and Trump go back to 1984 and especially from 1991, why do you think he won't make public his tax records and special Congress investigator Robert Mueller has drafted in the best fraud and money laundering investigators in the US. He is also allegedly targeting state offenses as Trump cannot pardon those.

Trump's Atlantic City Casino history and finances make 'interesting' reading and don't ask where the money came from to rescue bankrupt property empire when US banks shunned him. I think the saying is go east young man.
