Russia's at it again

MoskvaRed said:
Are you thinking of the murder of Boris Nemtsov? Rumours that Kadyrov was behind it but who knows. But that was a more classic hit - gunshots (and on Russian soil). If the Salisbury attack were solely about killing a traitor (either for revenge or to curry favour), I would expect a less baroque method than spraying nerve gas on flowers.
Click to expand...
Where did you get that from? Do you have a link?
 
MoskvaRed said:
Are you thinking of the murder of Boris Nemtsov? Rumours that Kadyrov was behind it but who knows. But that was a more classic hit - gunshots (and on Russian soil). If the Salisbury attack were solely about killing a traitor (either for revenge or to curry favour), I would expect a less baroque method than spraying nerve gas on flowers.
Click to expand...
I think that’s the one. But yeah, your other points make a lot of sense.
 
Red Defence said:
Where did you get that from? Do you have a link?
Click to expand...

It was media speculation on a line of enquiry with regard to flowers (the flowers being connected to a visit to his wife’s grave).But, flowers or no flowers, the nerve gas bit alone is enough raise suspicions. There must be easier ways to kill someone if you are part of service with a rich tradition of assassinations.
 
MoskvaRed said:
It was media speculation on a line of enquiry with regard to flowers (the flowers being connected to a visit to his wife’s grave).But, flowers or no flowers, the nerve gas bit alone is enough raise suspicions. There must be easier ways to kill someone if you are part of service with a rich tradition of assassinations.
Click to expand...
How fast acting is this particular nerve agent, do we know?
 
Nimrata is dropping some serious bombs on Russia at the UN now.
 
I'm glad we're doing something.

Expelling a large amount of diplomats and seizing assets is a big start.
 
Strong words, I like her... Won't have any trouble finding a new job I'm sure.
 
Am I reading this right? The russian guy has started referencing inspector lestrade and sherlock holmes?:lol:
 
Britain learns what it feels like when a foreign power attacks it's enemies on our soil and and the consequent collateral damage
 
Vilev said:
If you'd read what i have written one more time, you'll get that this type of "hitting" them is exactly what Putin would have wanted. Since it would force some of russian elite to go back, to bring money back, others no to go at all and so on.
And what accounts would those be?
I do know what i am talking about. Around 10 years ago Abramovich had quite o lot of russian projects, football, culture and otherwise. He had a lot of assets. In the last 6 years he sold most of that and closed down all of his projects. Right now Abramovich is almost completely excluded in russian affairs, he also have only leftover russian assets. Essentially there is very little that ties him to Russia right now. Why is that i don't know. He may have good personal relationship with Putin still, i have no idea where they are now or where they've been for that matter. But fo some reason he chose to cut most of his ties with Russia.
Click to expand...

If we were to seize their assets then they'd clearly be extremely unhappy, and if they're powerful enough to be bringing money back to Russia then they're powerful...and if they're powerful and unhappy then that puts Putin in a precarious position. Especially if we apply economic sanctions alongside that to offset any benefits and further dent the Russian economy, stirring up further unrest and demonstrating to Putin that he can't pull this sort of shite without consequences as a result.
 
Deflection, point scoring. He disappoints me a lot.
 
Raoul said:
LOL. The CIA and DOD answer to the President, so if he is for the policy then they will comply. It would send the Russian banking system into the dark ages.
Click to expand...
That president would have to be a complete moron. You can't really ignore strong CIA/DOD advice. Most likely outcome you'll be impeached. President can't do everything he wants, esp not in USA. Trump can built his walls, get his tariffs. But with everything really major and international any US president must have full Congress and relative ministry backing. And Congress love it's CIA advice.
 
Vilev said:
That president would have to be a complete moron. You can't really ignore strong CIA/DOD advice. Most likely outcome you'll be impeached. President can't do everything he wants, esp not in USA. Trump can built his walls, get his tariffs. But with everything really major and international any US president must have full Congress and relative ministry backing. And Congress love it's CIA advice.
Click to expand...

They would all be on board with any decision made. In fact it is one of the options being discussed in recent times.
 
Thornberry's response is better

 
Raoul said:
They would all be on board with any decision made. In fact it is one of the options being discussed in recent times.
Click to expand...
It's discussed for public's sake. Intelligence community would never even consider switching Russia, China off SWIFT, because they understand that any harm to Russia would be insignificant compared to data lost.
Right now american agencies can track almost every major banking operation inside Russia and definitely all operations in and out of the country. Do you honestly think there is even a slightest chance they would give that up?
 
Vilev said:
It's discussed for public's sake. Intelligence community would never even consider switching Russia, China off SWIFT, because they understand that any harm to Russia would be insignificant compared to data lost.
Right now american agencies can track almost every major banking operation inside Russia and definitely all operations in and out of the country. Do you honestly think there is even a slightest chance they would give that up?
Click to expand...

They're not discussing anything about China. They're talking about Russia alone. The intel community doesn't care about Swift as an Intel collection source. The broader objective would be to cripple Putin's banking system.
 
Dobba said:
Can they do it all within 45 minutes?
Click to expand...

Undoubtedly a nod to the Iraq war.

I thought the line was the 45 minute claim was a Blair 'sex up'. Now are we to believe it's what the intelligence service believed and Blair acted in good faith based on that information? This is quite the revelation.

It surely can't be both. Blair can't have invented the 45 minute claim and therefore a war criminal but equally the intelligence services made it up and therefore are completely unreliable. Unless the new line is that two simultaneous claims that Iraq could distribute nuclear weapons within 45 minutes coincidentally emerged at the same time, meaning Blair invented one and the intelligence services invented the other.

If Corbyn becomes PM and cannot trust the intelligence services will our foreign policy be based on whatever hunch he wakes up with on the day? Maybe Cobra meetings will be a gathering of the country's preeminent tea leaf readers?
 
Sied said:
Anything would have been stronger than Corbyn's statement. He's such a wet arse.
Click to expand...

It's quite admirable he managed to balls it up to be honest. Like watching those old VHS tapes, Danny Baker's Most Bonkers Misses, or something. Sometimes he's so spectacularly wide of the mark you really do have to be envious of how he's possibly achieved it. Unity with the findings of the intelligence services and unequivocal condemnation - that's all he need to do.

You wonder if those who are advising him are secret Tories who are taking the piss.
 
Cheesy said:
If we were to seize their assets then they'd clearly be extremely unhappy, and if they're powerful enough to be bringing money back to Russia then they're powerful...and if they're powerful and unhappy then that puts Putin in a precarious position. Especially if we apply economic sanctions alongside that to offset any benefits and further dent the Russian economy, stirring up further unrest and demonstrating to Putin that he can't pull this sort of shite without consequences as a result.
Click to expand...
There will be zero consequences for Putin. Zero. All these sanctions four years back were to supposed to cut Putin's support. Instead it's around twice the size it was when he retained president's role back in 2012 i think. He has a huge support, and no amount of unhappy oligarchs would change that. It's just daft to think it would. Also Russia economy is very much government-based. For example there is this oligarch, he was named in EC sanctions list, his assets frozen etc. Did he care? No. Cause back in Russia his companies got fat government orders for that Crimea projects. So he easily returned any money "lost".
All of the economic sanctions against Russia is useless and ineffective. As long as Europe buys russian oil and gas Russia is golden. And EC loves russian gas, including UK. The amount of gas sold to Europe is rising last couple of years and currently on record levels.
 
Raoul said:
They're not discussing anything about China. They're talking about Russia alone. The intel community doesn't care about Swift as an Intel collection source. The broader objective would be to cripple Putin's banking system.
Click to expand...
It does. It's the biggest and almost exclusive data source about banking system.
And it's crippling effects are blown out of proportions. It will hurt of course. But ultimately as i've written just now while Europe, China and UK&US as well buy russian gas and oil there is little they can do to hurt Russia economically. For example, 4 years after sanctions and Russia still has more than 400 billions in international reserves.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.