Evidence submitted by the British government in court today proves, beyond any doubt, that Boris Johnson has been point blank lying about the degree of certainty Porton Down scientists have about the Skripals being poisoned with a Russian “novichok” agent.
Yesterday in an interview with Deutsche Welle Boris Johnson claimed directly Porton Down had told him they positively identified the nerve agent as Russian:
You argue that the source of this nerve agent, Novichok, is Russia. How did you manage to find it out so quickly? Does Britain possess samples of it?
Let me be clear with you … When I look at the evidence, I mean the people from Porton Down, the laboratory …
So they have the samples …
They do. And they were absolutely categorical and I asked the guy myself, I said, “Are you sure?” And he said there’s no doubt.
I knew and had published from my own whistleblowers that this is a lie. Until now I could not prove it. But today I can absolutely prove it, due to the judgement at the High Court case which gave permission for new blood samples to be taken from the Skripals for use by the OPCW. Justice Williams included in his judgement a summary of the evidence which tells us, directly for the first time, what Porton Down have actually said:
The Evidence
16. The evidence in support of the application is contained within the applications
themselves (in particular the Forms COP 3) and the witness statements.
17. I consider the following to be the relevant parts of the evidence. I shall identify the
witnesses only by their role and shall summarise the essential elements of their
evidence.
i) CC: Porton Down Chemical and Biological Analyst
Blood samples from Sergei Skripal and Yulia Skripal were analysed and the
findings indicated exposure to a nerve agent or related compound. The samples
tested positive for the presence of a Novichok class nerve agent OR CLOSELY RELATED AGENT.
The emphasis is mine. This sworn Court evidence direct from Porton Down is utterly incompatible with what Boris Johnson has been saying. The truth is that Porton Down have not even positively identified this as a “Novichok”, as opposed to “a closely related agent”. Even if it were a “Novichok” that would not prove manufacture in Russia, and a “closely related agent” could be manufactured by literally scores of state and non-state actors.
This constitutes irrefutable evidence that the government have been straight out lying – to Parliament, to the EU, to NATO, to the United Nations, and above all to the people – about their degree of certainty of the origin of the attack. It might well be an attack originating in Russia, but there are indeed other possibilities and investigation is needed. As the government has sought to whip up jingoistic hysteria in advance of forthcoming local elections, the scale of the lie has daily increased.
On a sombre note, I am very much afraid the High Court evidence seems to indicate there is very little chance the Skripals will ever recover; one of the reasons the judge gave for his decision is that samples taken now will be better for analysis than samples taken post mortem.
——————————————————-
This website remains under a massive DOS attack which has persisted for more than 24 hours now, but so far the defences are holding. Some strange form of “ghost banning” is also affecting both my twitter and Facebook feeds. So please
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The state and corporate media now have evidence of the vast discrepancy between what May and Johnson are saying, and the truth about the Porton Down scientists’ position. I am afraid to say I expect this to make no difference whatsoever to the propaganda output of the BBC.
One of the most telling and interesting threads of the Cambridge Analytica story is something that gets mentioned in most of the big pieces but is seldom a focus of attention. Most of the algorthms, techniques and strategies the company eventually deployed against the UK and the US were first used for elections operations in developing countries, what we once called the Third World. The reason is key: these countries had far less legal and technical infrastructure to defend themselves against these kinds of attacks. It was basically anything goes. And if someone got upset it didn’t matter all that much since these countries are off the main arteries of global news flows and have little capacity to uncover or hold to account a shadowy British company which is actually a subsidiary of a company wedded to the British defense establishment.
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/cambridge-analyticas-trial-runs-in-the-developing-world
Ben,
do you not realise that DS Bailey’s wife works for Cambrdige Analytica?
”telling and interesting” or sick and depraved?
Following this month’s Chemical Weapon Attack on Britain by Russia and in response to Lessons Learned from the Crisis and feedback from the recent UK Armed Forces NBC Training Exercise the Government is issuing, as an Urgent Equipment Procurement (UEP), New Front-Line NBC Personal Protection Kits.
Emergency Issue NBC Protection Kit
Emergency Issue NBC Protection Kit
https://gymcraftlaundry.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Homemade-Wet-Wipes-that-can-be-used-as-DIY-Feminine-Wipes.jpg
”Following this month’s Chemical Weapon Attack on Britain by Russia”
Does anyone know if this qualifies as a ‘blood libel’ under UK law?
It certainly qualifies as utter nonsense!
If you can bear it, you can watch Johnson giving evidence to the Foreign Affairs Committee. 21st March, 2018.
Witnesses
The Thatcher Room, Portcullis House
Rt Hon Boris Johnson MP, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
Sir Simon McDonald, Permanent Under Secretary and Head of the Diplomatic Service, Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Ms Karen Pierce, Director General, Political, Foreign and Commonwealth Office
https://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/foreign-affairs-committee/news-parliament-2017/secretary-of-state-evidence-session-17-19/
Membership – Foreign Affairs Committee
Tom Tugendhat was elected as Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday 12 July 2017.
The remaining members of the Committee were formally appointed on Monday 11 September 2017.
Member/Party
Tom Tugendhat (Chair) Conservative
Ian Austin Labour
Chris Bryant Labour
Ann Clwyd Labour
Mike Gapes Labour (Co-op)
Stephen Gethins Scottish National Party
Ian Murray Labour
Priti Patel Conservative
Andrew Rosindell Conservative
Mr Bob Seely Conservative
Royston Smith Conservative
I found this recording of the sound Jeremy Corbyn made today when he bowed and scraped before the fascists of the Labour Friends of I___el. If he kowtowed any lower, he’d be flat on his belly. You have to wonder whether he walks backwards out of the room when they dismiss him from a meeting.
“Pockets of anti*emitism” – what a load of crap! Seriously, what leftwing person has anybody ever met who doesn’t value e.g. the contribution made by J__s to the fight against fascism in Spain, or the J__s who refused to succumb as the Z__nists wanted them to in the Warsaw ghetto, and who fought one of the most heroic backs-to-the-wall struggles in history, people who made posters like . Jeremy Corbyn is an absolute f***ing disgrace for abasing himself to fascists.
That poster I linked to is from ZOB, the J__ish Fighting Organization in the Warsaw Ghetto. It is written in Hebrew and reads:
“All people are equal brothers: Brown, White, Black and Yellow. To separate peoples, colors, races is but an act of cheating!”
That is what genuinely leftwing people believe now and what we have always believed. It is not at all complicated: it is extremely simple.
(The only reason I use “_”s here is so as not to waste the mods’ time by letting posts get stuck in the mod queue that don’t need to be.)
Because, I still have long blonde hair, despite my age, and tonight the band had a really good Keyboard Player, I was out at half time, and thought about putting in a Request for some Rick Wakeman, cos years ago, people used to call me Rick, just like on the bus – people I had never seen before called me Rick, and I didn’t mind, except I am not that good looking and am a little fatter.
Before then people used to call me Boris, which at the time, I didn’t mind.. I may even have voted for him as The Mayor of London
Then I got called Jimmy (Saville) which I did mind, but he was already dead,
From what I said, tonight, and the reactions I got most people preferred Jimmy Saville to Boris Johnson.
I made no effort to appear as Theresa May, but seriously considered wearing my Red rather Offensive Putin T-Shirt, but thought it might not be wise.
The pub is right opposite to an Ex-Serviceman’s Club, and very close to one of the Biggest Cop shops in London.
On refelection, I should have had a little more courage and worn my Red Putin T-Shirt.
I might well do next time.
Our local cops and soldiers are not stupid.
I got the distinct impression that None of them can stand the morons in Government, nor the press who work for them
Almost all of us can detect a load of complete bollocks, including the drummer from Edinburgh.
Boris Johnson – from what I can gather – no one likes you – not even The Scottish.
The band were very good – they even played UFO “Lights out in London”..but I reckon they were taking the p1ss. It’s quite obvious the lead singer comes from Yorkshire
“UFO – Lights Out (1977)”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YojOTrjQ9WM
Tony
Re the Skripals:
The pair remain stable in hospital and under heavy sedation… An unnamed consultant told the court.
Can this be true? Why would the consultant be unnamed?
‘Cos it’s a secret! As is much else connected with this matter.
The British Authorities are refusing consular access to Yulia Skripal, I believe Julia has a Mother and a boy friend in Russia. The hospital say they have not been approached by anyone known to the patients to enquire of their welfare. The SSHD Have not sought to make contact with them. This is very strange, if your child or girl friend had met the same fate in Russia. You would be on the next flight to that hospital in Russia, your expenses taken care of by the UK Foreign Office. What’s going on?
Harry
Yes ..That is What I was Thinking Earlier Today..Jeez it Stinks
Harry
I think the mother is dead (cancer)
She has a boyfriend and at least one cousin, and Segey’s mother is still alive
(Funny that Putin hasn’t knocked them off, that would really stick it to Sergey and warn off any would be traitors.)
Pablo Miller met with Sergey once a week at a restaurant in Salisbury.
As far as I know, he has never been interviewed, seemingly he has not once enquired after Sergey’s health .Odd? Has he gone to ground?
Ross somebody or other , another friend of Sergey’s picked up Yulia from the airport on Sunday
No word from him?
At any rate , have you ever tried to enquire after a patient in any hospital if you’re not a partner or a close relative?
Privacy rules take precedence
The Russian consul under international law should have access to one of its nationals
So far denied
It stinks alright
I see no reason why the Russian Ambassador should be denied access. He should turn up at the hospital and demand entry.
They would accuse him of trying to ‘finish off the job’.
Yep common practice for the representatives of those accused of attempted murder to be allowed access to their victims – the GULAG never denied the KGB access.
I thought They were innocent. They have never caused me a hard time, and neither to be honest has Jeremy Corbyn. I might disagree with some of his policies, but Why are They giving Jeremy such a Hard Time?
He hasn’t said anything offensive, in fact I think he is a bit of a wimp.
Why not tell the truth Jeremy – I’m sure you know….
But still they attack him, and he hasn’t said or done anything wrong. He has hardly said anything
Have you guys got a seriously guilty conscience? Are you guys so Arrogant that You think you are in control?
Maybe Reverse The Headlines, and we might get a little bit closer, but to be honest I never thought you lot were really in the game.
Bit time players with no decent history. You think you can take on The British?
You lot are almost all from Russia – or close by.
You come to England, and try and take us lot on.
You are Rubbish
No one believes you, nor your paid for puppets, pretending to do what you tell them in The UK Government.
Basically, you guys are a waste of space, and should go back to The Ukraine, where most of you came from. Even The Russians chucked you out, and I can hardly blame them.
Go on Go Away – Out of My Country England.
We can’t stand The Smell.
You STINK.
Tony
Tony.
Come join us here.
https://going-postal.com/
Apparently the new govt line, as per the FT, is: “a nerve agent developed by the Soviet military”.
Note, Soviet, not Russian.
There is now evidence that the agent A234 is actually an American design as published in 1998.
https://www.fort-russ.com/2018/03/47368/
So much for Russia being the “highly likely” culprit. But, it does help to understand motives. This gives credence to the theory that Skripal was a key player in the Steele documents and was going to start talking (of course for money). Apparently their phones were deliberately turned off for 4 hours which indicates a clandestine meeting somewhere nearby. Cui bono is always the best way to examine these kinds of events.
Theresa May points to Russia’s past “behaviour” as an indication of guilt
That the Russians are not beyond poisoning people
Actually, closer to home , we see British “behaviour ” in action
Porton Down has , in the past used unknowing human guinea pigs, British citizens , to test their chemical weapons on
And that directive would have come right from the top
They certainly don’t seem to be winding their programs down either, 48 more million pounds handed over within weeks of the Skripal poisoning, and apparently an unprecedented number of animals used in experiments in the last few months
The OPCW should take a good look at Porton Down while its there.
Well, hell, let’s look at some other of Britain’s “past behavior,” shall we?
As an American, I say that your government, in 2002-03, was not beyond advocating for and starting a dishonest and illegal war on Iraq based upon the LIES about Saddam Hussein having “weapons of mass destruction.” (That they were the “poodles” of the United States in this state of affairs, I sadly admit.)
For those of you who doubt what I’m saying, just remember the infamous Downing Street Memo (published in the Times of London in 2004 or 2005) and how it revealed that it had confidentially been made clear to Tony Blair by his special envoy to D.C. during the summer of 2002 that the Bush Administration was “fixing” the intelligence in support of a pre-determined policy to attack Iraq and remove Saddam Hussein. In other words, the Downing Street Memo made it clear to Blair that the Bush Administration was PURPOSELY DISTORTING THE CASE about Saddam Hussein having WMD. Nonetheless, Tony Blair went on to endorse those DISTORTIONS by whole-heartedly and enthusiastically supporting the LIES about WMD and by advocating for and participating in regime change in Iraq during 2002-03.
Why would I put it past any such government–that DECEITFULLY participated and ASSISTED in a war that resulted in the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of innocents–to now lie about an alleged Russian chemical attack?
Seems like your British politicians are STILL the “poodles” of the leaders of my country–the good ole U.S. of A.
Sad state of affairs, isn’t it?
You have missed an interesting piece here.
Don’t put the blame on Blair and the Labour Party entirely.
The Labour party rebelled.
Blair didn’t have enough parliamentary votes.
So David Cameron, Theresa May – yes HER – and other Tories crossed the floor of the Commons and voted it through.
The Tories – May’s Tories VOTED IT THROUGH in support of Blair.
That is why they are terrified of Chilcott and of holding Blair to account.
You are correct of course many Tories voted with Labour in favour of the invasion of Iraq. But it was the lying Blair with his lying propagandist Alistair (45 minutes ) Campbell who provided the false premise which was voted on.
I’m not putting the blame on the Labour Party. I’m putting the blame on your government as a whole, and I’m doing so in light of May’s claim that the past bad behavior of a government can be the predictor of future behavior.
The point is, she should look in the mirror before she opens her mouth to place blame on other countries. Her beloved Tories (along with the morally bankrupt Tony Blair and his immoral Labour Party allies) LIED your country into war based upon false allegations about another country (Iraq).
They did it in the past. What makes anyone think they aren’t capable of doing it again, especially since, (according to May’s own stated reasoning) past actions are the best predictors of future behavior?
talking about Soylent Green, a fine movie, I wonder what would Charlton Heston have done in these circumstances?
I think he would go to Salisbury, track down Pablo Miller and Jonathan Steele, force them to spill the beans on Skripal and Cambridge Analytica, then smuggle himself into Porton Down and scream out “Porton Down is Evil” via a live stream to You Tube.
Don’t forget the lie Porton Down spun over the so-called ‘Wood Green ricin plot’ in 2002. It was used to influence public and Parliamentary opinion in the run up to Iraq. They have form.
https://www.opcw.org/about-chemical-weapons/types-of-chemical-agent/nerve-agents/
Poisoning takes longer when the nerve agent enters the body through the skin. Nerve agents are more or less fat-soluble and can penetrate the outer layers of the skin. However, it takes some time before the poison reaches the deeper blood vessels. Consequently, the first symptoms do not occur until 20-30 minutes after the initial exposure but subsequently the poisoning process may be rapid if the total dose of nerve agent is high. The toxic effect of nerve agents depends on them becoming bound to an enzyme, acetylcholinesterase, and thereby inhibit this vital enzyme’s normal biological activity in the cholinergic nervous system.
15:35 – They leave the restaurant
4.08pm: Figures that appear to be Sergei Skripal and daughter Yulia are seen walking down Market Walk towards the bench where they were found.
4.15pm: Police car speeds up the shopping centre at 20mph with lights flashing.
4.16pm: A hero paramedic sprints towards the victims on foot clutching a first aid bag.
4.18pm: A first responder vehicle drives up to help colleagues treat Sergei and Yulia.
“The first symptoms do not occur until 20-30 minutes after the initial exposure”
30 minutes?
so you are saying they angered the Chef and he poisoned them?
He admitted he thought they were a holes, but novichocking them is going too far even for an enraged Italian Restaurant chef.
How could it be their house doorknob then if symptoms appear after 30 minutes?
in Response To James @
james
March 24, 2018 at 06:36
giyane and brianfujisan –
James giyan was responding to a post of mine Deleted ..That had Quotes and Links to MoA ( Moon of Alabama – Saker.) I think it was deleted because I was talking Stars n wishes for about 5 sentences..Considering the Rest of the content of my post.. VERY on Topic.. Disapionting.
hi brian,
i can’t recall what it was, but thanks for bringing it up again! i haven’t been a regular poster to craig murrays site, so have no idea of how the site works, or what gets kept or deleted… i am a novice to this site in that regard… nothing i recall was untoward in any way.. cheers
James
Please stay aroon, as we Scots might say
Just that You were Promoting Exactly..a Site I had Just Linked to…
There has Been Lots of New One’s Recently..Stay with it ..and Thanks
thanks!!
Sergei Skripal Was up to something that led to his poisoning. If he was meeting somebody and it led him to him being poisoned then it sure wasn’t the Russian state that did it.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5893197/russia-spy-mobile-mystery-skripal/amp/
If you look at the timeline of the Skripal’s their phones were switched off when they got to the cemetery. There may be nothing sinister in this it may have simply been done for peace and tranquillity while paying there respects in a quiet place of contemplation. That said 4 hours does seem a rather long time and we don’t know how long they remained at the graveside.
As far as I understand, merely switching your phone off doesn’t mean that you can’t be tracked
You’d have to take out your sim card for that
Is it possible they left their phones at home, and collected them before going out to the pub and restaurant?
Maureen you are quite correct it would be a brave fool who thought NSA/GCHQ would be unable to track a switched off phone. Even with the sim card removed tracking would still be possible as the phone still has unique identifiers. You would have to place the phone in a Faraday bag to guarantee no tracking.
@Maureen, yes she has a boyfriend:
It seems that Julia Skripal’s boyfriend is Denis Dementyev, who works at Nike in Moscow but is alleged (by Victoria Skripal) to be also working for Russian Intelligence
It also looks like I am the first person to publish this new information ?
Photographs of him taken with Julia Skripal can be seen here: http://valet.ru/user/95338/
Further links to Facebook, Linkedin and Russian social networks deleted to avoid automatic post deletion by admin
one revealing Facebook comment by Denis Dementyev I found: ” but judging by the articles guardian and bbc several Yulia’s “friends” did not hesitate to haypanut the situation. How then it will be unclear to look into the eyes – like I gave interviews to the Guardians while my girlfriend was fighting for life in intensive care, so I’m done!”
If anyone can research his parents, it will save me some time, as It’s a long list of “Dementyev” high up in the “structure” and I’m assuming initially that if his mother is “high up in the structure” then his father probably is too.
My aim is to corroborate or disprove Viktoria Skripal’s allegations 10 days ago on mashtv in Russia that his mother was the person who planted a bottle of poisoned perfume or some other item in her suitcase (this was also claimed by intelligence officers to the Telegraph although they suggested the poison was intended for Mr. Skripal instead of his daughter) and reported in many newspapers a week ago,
Hope it’s not this Dementyev:
Deputy chief of Russia’s strategic air force killed in gangland shooting
Nov 1, 2004 – The General, Konstantin Dementyev, was killed by unknown assailants on the main road between Minsk and Moscow as he returned from holiday in Belarus. Both Dementyev and his driver were killed on the spot, while a second passenger was rushed to a Smolensk hospital. According to unspecified …
Could be: Sergey Gennadevich Dementyev appointed the Director general of JSC Aviastar
or
Former Deputy Industry and Energy Minister Andrei Dementyev
or
Lt. Gen. Valery Dementyev
I think the poison in the luggage story is now not being given credence
The car ventilation system as a means of dispersal has also gone west
Yes, I noticed that, but we need to bear in mind that crumbs are thrown out to the greedy pigeons in the Uk media on a daily basis so that they can have an “exclusive” and headline. These crumbs, usually a new theory on how the Skripal’s were poisoned, purportedly come from unnamed “intelligence sources”.
One day it will be the Mail, the next the Times, the next the Telegraph, then the Sun, etcetera. So far, correct me if I am wrong, these “sources” (real or imagined by the newspapers) have suggested:
Julia’s Suitcase
Julia’s perfume
Julia’s Clothes
Mini Drone
BMW door handle
BMW ventilation system
Flowers in a graveyard
aerosol can spray in face
poison in restaurant food
poison in pub drink
The latest crumb hurled at us is the Skripal house doorknob..
What will be the next one? Why believe any of them?
I think it is a good idea to investigate each claim on its merits and fill any gaps in the claims, thus I found out the name of her boyfriend and will now discover his parent’s identities. By doing so, I can judge whether the initial claims made by Viktoria and Tamara are valid or not, irrespective of the latest “evidence” published via unnamed “sources”
I think inducing a powder into the cars ventilation system would be both problematic and potentially very hazardous to the person placing the poison without wearing very obvious safety equipment. Ideally access to the engine bay would be required to place it into the cabin air intake behind the pollen filter.
UK Jury seems to have shat its pants quietly this morning in protest at Jeremy Corbyn questioning May and Johnson’s lies. No apology of course from the perpetrator but in UK politeness ethic it is always the party that has been inconvenienced that has to apologise. Sorry, sorry, sorry for drawing attention to this predictable reprisal to JC for pausing to think instead of jumping over the cliff with the rest of the lemmings.
We are all Russians now, it appears. . .
77% of people online – when questioned – think that BoJob is a liar, but that’s due to Kreml nudging, obviously.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/03/26/russian-trolls-attempted-manipulate-view-salisbury-poisoning/
and the SBS crumb in the above article is torygraph nudging, but we’re only supposed the read the TfoI/LfoI/ soft-assassination (“negative treatment”) stories about Corby that features prominently in all UK media this morning.
http://www.newsweek.com/2018/02/16/mossad-israel-rise-and-kill-ronen-bergman-assassinations-secret-history-797888.html
Seems that “negative treatment” doesn’t actually deliver the reasonable security that they seek, historically. Perhaps I just have this point of view because I retweet rooskies, or perhaps I have read widely, from different information sources outwith of any bubbles and made up my own ideas, пока.
Terrible character assassination of Corbyn on Radio 5 Live this morning. Nicky Campbell and another. They even had John Mann on. I had to switch it off. There is no other topic.
The BBC have moved on from Salisbury. Terrible.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-43536830
This is their fourth version. https://www.newssniffer.co.uk/articles/1572175/diff/2/3
Yes, Sharp ears, very much my thought. They are picking up were they left of at the BBC.
This smouldering argy bargy about anti Semitism/Zionism is beginning to demean whatever the issue once was.
It is an indication how much the FoI have infiltrated the decision making in this country, whether its foreign policy or their usurpation of the BBC’s narratives.
This organisation has been wrecked by its allegiances with foreign and national split loyalists who need exposing.
FoI as a way of infiltrating political parties should be banned, why should foreign interests usurp those of local constituents and their needs/causes brought to their local representatives?
Where are the FoFr,FoNz, FoG,FoR,FoHK,FoN,FoSw,FoFi ?
Being friendly with one rogue state alone? what good could that bring for local democracy and a fairer representation?
answer….Nothing, zilch, except media harassment, favouritism, split loyalties, corrupt practises, diversions etc.etc.
The BBC seems to think that if the Tory Government is in peril, focus on Corbyn and his past demeanour’ s within the party, its like picking up pooh sticks all over again, and again, and again. what a pathetic performance.
Many phone calls to LBC’s James O’Brien this morning too from the NW London area!
The BBC have moved on to their 8th version of that piece. https://www.newssniffer.co.uk/articles/1572175/diff/6/7
There is a new sub heading in the side bar which links to the same article.
Top Stories
J*ewish groups in scathing attack on Corbyn
In an open letter the Labour leader is accused of siding with anti-Semites “again and again”.
10 minutes ago
They have added comment from Mr ‘Normal’ Smith who refers to the BDBJ and JLC letter.
‘Analysis by BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith
What is extraordinary about this letter is not just the raw anger – but the fact that they directly blame Jeremy Corbyn and his brand of politics for allowing anti-Semitism to get a hold in the Labour Party.
They accuse him of a far-left world view which they say is instinctively hostile to mainstream J*wish communities.
What they mean by that is a view of Israel as a sort of neo-colonialist, Imperialist power, associated with the US, oppressing Palestinians, and it is that sort of politics that has allowed anti-Semitic views to gain a hold.
But Mr Corbyn’s supporters believe claims of anti-Semitism are ridiculous and absurd, given the leader’s anti-racism record – they say those making the accusations are using it to attack him.’
A sort of supportive comment.
Ms Jo Coburn on the BBC programme, Daily Politics has introduced the subject, of course, and is speaking to Newton-Dunn, Political Editor of the Sun! and now Simon Johnson of the J*wish Leadership Council. Appalling stuff.
Keep going BBC. We know what your agenda is.
The BBC headlines with the smear campaign – but being suckered by it.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-43536830
“They accuse [Mr Corbyn] of a far left world view which they say is instinctively hostile to mainstream Jewish communities,” “What they mean by that is a view of Israel as inherently a sort of neo-colonialist, imperialist power oppressing Palestinians, associated with America, and it is that sort of politics that has allowed anti-Semitic views to gain a hold.”
Thinking Israel oppresses Palestinians = anti-semitism
Anybody on the left who does not clearly denounce J—-h racism is a gutless phony.
Anybody who accepts that Z–nists speak for all J—s might just as well accept that the BNP speak for all whites.
Z–nism is J—-h Nazism.
Either we call Corbyn now what he really is, a man too gutless to stand up to Nazi racists who happen to be J—-h…
…or we hope to enjoy a frisson when we read something revealing in his autobiography about the British Board of Deputies, about something that wasn’t made public, perhaps a threat or a horse’s head.
That’s assuming a) Corbyn can find a publisher for such a revelation (unlikely), and b) you survive the nuclear holocaust and you’ve got an intact copy of his tome.
Is there one public figure on the entire British left who explicitly opposes J—-h racism?
That’s how weak we are.
The same narration is in Poland. On a regular basis there appear in MSM information about Russian bots attacting Polish forums, Olgino trolls etc. It’s symptomatic that institutions which make such announcements pretty often have similar names as Atlantic Council mentioned in Telegraph article. Thus everyone who calls to keep common sense, to improve relationship with Russia or just says that war is not something we need is a Russian bot/troll.
That’s interesting info, Lestek. It strongly suggests what I’d already concluded, that the psychological warfare stage of WW3 has already begun. In particular, those who resist the war effort are viewed as willingly or unwittingly helping the enemy.
Anybody who doesn’t get this, try roleplaying an event such as a Russian aircraft flying to Kaliningrad getting shot down close to the border with, say, Estonian or Lithuanian airspace.
How big is what you describe in Poland? You say it’s “regular”. Is it growing? Is it wall to wall?
When the rulers of a country continually criticise the other side’s psychological warfare effort, that is a sign not of strength but of weakness. Things cannot go on as they are for much longer. Soon the western rulers will have to “offer some strength” to their sheeples.
N_, I have no doubts psychological warfare stage of WW3 you mentioned, has begun.
What does it mean ‘regular’? I would say I can hear/see that at least once a week, but there are waves when such statements/articles intensify and appear more often. What’s interesting this happens always shortly after our government (or US, or NATO etc.) does something provocative/hostile against Russia and people start to protest and call ‘Stop this antirussian madness!’.
Of course those actions are sign of weakness. More – beyond doubt Russians will prevail. Not beacause of their hypersonic missiles, but their high moral code – this sort of code, which has been forgotten in the West as well as in the countries (like Poland) which have been incorporated to the circle of ‘western values’.
In my opinion Russians have way more than greed, stockmarkets, GMO, facebook, instagram, snapchat, gender, feminism, multi-kulti, celebrities, globalisation and all this crap, which – for some reason and no knowing when – become essence of our lives. Russians have common purpose, strong and charismatic leader and vision. They are proud, united in patriotism which is not facade, but comes straight from their hearts. They preserve their national individuality, while people in the West have been tricked to disown their heritage and then have been shredded, ground, brainwashed, atomised and – as a result – en masse became perfect Nobodies. In exactly the same manner as told Christopher Wylie, this whistleblower from Cambride Analytica: ‘If you want to change the way a person votes you have to change the culture the person lives within. To change a culture, first you have to smash the existing one then grab the pieces and mold it into the shape you want the culture to be’.
I must say. The same situatio is in Czech republic. Atlantic council is very active.
50th reloaded. McCarthy is reborn.
I seldom hear any news of what goes on at Porton Down so imagine my surprise when R$ broadcast this positive snippet about scientists there developing a new method of producing Titanium more efficiently.
http://emsnow.com/uk-defense-secretary-porton-announces-titanium-production-breakthrough/
What a great bunch they are & how they deserve the funding boost promised a couple of weeks back.
Craig – you have a supporter in Rob Slane via TheBlogMire.com,
Now reposted and up on Zerohedge.
Quoting and supporting you extensively.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-03-25/30-questions-journalists-should-be-asking-about-skripal-case
’30 questions journalists should asking….’
Clearly doesn’t understand the sheer dishonesty of the British MSM.
The Corbyn, J__ Hater fable being yet another pukka example.
re: Boris Johnson’s Links to Russian ‘diplomat’
This link is dated 19 February 2018, and is from ‘Business Insider’ – but which contains paragraphs from the Guardian:-
http://uk.businessinsider.com/suspected-russian-spy-pictured-with-his-good-friend-boris-johnson-2018-2
The article commences with allegations in the media levelled against Mr Corbyn and his links to a ‘former Czech spy’. Presumably, by way of response to the attempt to smear Mr Corbyn, not whether there is basis to those links or not, information then appeared in similar vein regarding ‘Russians’ and Boris Johnson.
Given what unfolded just a couple of weeks later in Salisbury, this is perhaps telling. Such as:-
“Over the weekend, bloggers dug up a now-deleted tweet sent by suspected Russian agent Sergey Nalobin, picturing him standing alongside what he described as his “good friend” the foreign secretary Boris Johnson.
So who is Nalobin? Well, he was a key figure in the reported Russian programme to deepen the “co-operation” between senior Conservative politicians and the Russian government under the umbrella of the Conservative Friends of Russia group.
According to the Guardian:
“Sergey Nalobin, has family ties to Russia’s intelligence agencies. His father, Nikolai Nalobin, is a former KGB general. Nalobin Sr worked in a top role with the FSB, the successor to the KGB, which the government believes was involved in the murder of Alexander Litvinenko. Litvinenko’s widow Marina said General Nalobin was her husband’s boss in the 1990s when Litvinenko was an FSB agent.”
and:-
“Johnson’s association with suspected Russian spies does not end there. Last year a photo emerged of Johnson meeting with Joseph Mifsud, a Maltese academic with alleged high-level links to the Putin regime.
Johnson initially denied meeting Mifsud, until photo evidence later emerged, after which his spokesperson said that he had never “knowingly” met him.”
So to an article from the Guardian (confusingly, the article itself suggests it is from the Observer), predating the above. This article is dated 11 November 2017 – whether by accident or design, Remembrance Sunday last year saw the coincidence of Remembrance Sunday being the actual date that Armistice Day is more associated with i.e. 11 November.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/nov/11/boris-johnson-met-london-professor-linked-to-fbis-russia-investigation
This article is perhaps more telling still given the drip-drip nature of information regarding the Trump Dossier that Christopher Steele, ex-MI6 man is currently under indictment for in the US.
https://www.scribd.com/document/374648986/Gubarev-v-Buzzfeed-2018-EWHC-512-QB-21-03-18#from_embed
Mr Steele being Sergei Skripal’s handler, as well as having been the case officer for Alexander Litvinenko, and the resulting investigation into Mr Litvinenko’s death from poisoning afterwards. The same death that Mr Steele according to his Wikipedia entry ‘quickly realised…. was a Russian State hit’.
This, from the Guardian report of 11 November 2017:-
“Boris Johnson is facing questions about the government’s links to key individuals named by the FBI in its Trump-Russia investigation, following the emergence of a photo of him with Joseph Mifsud, the “London professor” with high-level Kremlin contacts.
The foreign secretary is facing accusations of a potential security breach following the emergence of the photo of him with Mifsud, whose identity emerged as part of investigations into alleged links between Donald Trump’s election campaign and Russia.
This development comes less than a week after Johnson denied meeting the professor, and at a time when concern is growing about possible Russian interference in the Brexit campaign, in which the foreign secretary played a crucial role.
Although the FBI had known about Mifsud’s role as a high-level go-between linking the Trump campaign and the Russian government since at least July, it appears British intelligence did not warn the foreign secretary about the potential embarrassment or security implications before he attended a fundraising dinner with Mifsud on 19 October.”
The Guardian article was written just over 4 months ago, so whilst it is no less valid, some events have superseded some of what is written in it.
For instance, the allegations that are being referred to with regard to ‘Russian interference’ in Brexit *could* now be suggested should be discounted.
At the same time allegations surfaced in the US with regard to Russians interfering in the 2016 Presidential Election, the very same thing happened in the UK with Brexit – ‘the Russians interfered’ – however, what has been discounted, officially, since the Guardian article of 11 November 2017 was written is that allegations of Russian interference as they pertain to Donald Trump and the US Election are no longer valid due to the challenge made to the Trump Dossier that Christopher Steele is now known to have written for the DNC i.e. as a means to undermine Mr Trump – which Mr Steele is now under indictment for a related aspect of as per the Gubarev vs Buzzfeed lawsuit that is currently underway in the US (link as above).
Which means that HM government has been forced to acknowledge and admit that it was an ex-MI6 man who was actually responsible for trying to influence the outcome of the 2016 US Election and not those pesky Russians. Similarly, if the more recently acknowledged official view would then allow for a suggestion to be made that if the Russians were not behind any interference in the 2016 US Election, then it is just as likely that they were not behind any determination to undermine the Brexit vote either.
Only that in both cases, it was ‘Russians’ who got blamed.
Has Joseph Mifsud emerged alive from his disappearance?
He disappeared a week after the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia.
N_
Good grief! I had no idea about that – I will do some digging and come back to you.
N_,
re: Josef Mifsud – not according to his Wikipedia entry yet.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Mifsud
What is interesting is the Malta link – so although I was aware of the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, I had not in any way understood if there any potential links between Josef Mifsud and her death. This is awful – not least as it was none other than Julian Assange who offered a reward for information which would lead to her killers being brought to justice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daphne_Caruana_Galizia
What is potentially even more tantalising is ‘Malta’ itself. Not though for the above reasons, although all is likely to be connected in some way.
Amongst all the detail being hidden from view at this time is the name Pablo Miller. Mr Miller being the chap who is cited as being if not the actual recruiter of Sergei Skripal, then very closely linked to it via a mutual acquaintance, a Spanish man called Luis whose surname remains unknown.
https://meduza.io/en/feature/2018/03/06/a-hundred-grand-and-hundreds-of-betrayed-agents
“If we assume that Luzan’s account is generally accurate, then Skripal was recruited during a long-term assignment in Malta and Spain, where he “got greedy.” On this trip, Skripal befriended a Spanish man with the surname Luis, and the two started their own wine-import business in secret from Russia’s Military Intelligence Directorate. Luis later introduced Skripal to Antonio Alvarez de Hidalgo, the British recruiter Pablo Miller’s alter ego.”
‘Malta and Spain’. How unsatisfactory that the account would not simply say ‘Malta’ but there you have it – ‘Malta and Spain’ being the location where Sergei Skripal was recruited by MI6. My money is on ‘Malta’ even if Luis is Spanish!
Where does Pablo Miller live? Salisbury.
The thick plottens.
Could these be of any interest to you?
You have probably seen them.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/03/julian-assange-drops-a-bomb-implicates-british-government-in-dirty-anti-trump-dossier/
They may fit into your excellent post somewhere.
Emily,
Was that question addressed to me? I am not sure if it was in reply to my post or not. If it was – thank you very much – and yes, I am aware of what is in the link that you quoted. This is like trying to put a monumentally large jigsaw puzzle together but instead of one that covers a table, this one covers continents and as such, there are as many possible places where the pieces might go.
Christopher Steele is a corner piece, possibly even the centre-piece.
HI Sagittarius
Definitely for you.
Grand job you are doing connecting the dots.
Happened on that site last night – a link from another – and when I spotted your most interesting post…..
Do keep us up posted with your research
I think that this is almost certainly connected with Steele and MI6.
Syria to me seems a red herring – however it is an amazingly useful distraction from Brexit….
And instinct tells me there is more.
Good luck.
Good hunting.
Emily – thank you very much for the encouragement and support.
Emily,
PS – I just looked at that link again.
Despite already being aware of it, it was only as it pertained to tweet references to Christopher Steele that I was previously interested in it even though it starts off with several tweets about Joseph Mifsud. Now I understand that Jospeh Mifsud is a person of interest, and I realise that that series of tweets begins with references to Joseph Mifsud, it is even more telling for having been included in the same series of tweets that also referenced Christopher Steele.
Mr Assange is a very intelligent man – so although he did not include a direct reference to a link between Joseph Mifsud and Christopher Steele, he will know if one does exist, or not.
It is the fact he mentioned those two names but without intentionally linking them – when he must surely know that they are linked – that has me salivating! Why did he not mention the name that does link the two men?
The link between Joseph Mifsud and Christopher Steele is – Pablo Miller. No-one is talking about Pablo Miller. I wonder why?
Emily – this is new:
re: the Mifsud, Steele links – there are some new names in this article that pertain, notably, someone called Stefan Halper:-
http://dailycaller.com/2018/03/25/george-papadopoulos-london-emails/
“The meeting request, which has not been reported until now, came from Stefan Halper, a foreign policy expert and Cambridge professor with connections to the CIA and its British counterpart, MI6.”
This man is American but with British links as per the above. His background is most interesting.
This is what really caught my eye:-
“According to a source with knowledge of the meeting, Halper asked Papadopoulos: “George, you know about hacking the emails from Russia, right?””
Mr Papadopoulos was an adviser to Mr Trump, and was therefore suspicious of the contact made to him by Halper – on that basis, Halper’s words are telling.
Mr Halper did not wait for dialogue to evolve between the two of them, nor did he ask questions by way of introduction – he simply stated, as if already an established fact – ‘you know about hacking the emails from Russia right?’
This raises a possibility that Mr Halper may well be the actual source – and therefore MI6 – for having suggested that Russia was in possession of emails; presumably intended as an inference to Russia being in possession of dirt on Hillary Clinton – and that Mr Trump would want to know what that dirt was – and had therefore by way of response had hacked the Russians as a means to see what that dirt was on his opponent, Hillary Clinton.
Except, Russia never was in possession of any information – only that this is what people on both sides of the Atlantic were made to believe. Or, if they were, it was given to them, almost certainly by Mr Steele or someone linked to him.
If Mr Trump became aware that dirt on his opponent was available, few people would then believe that he would not want to know what that dirt was, so would then continue to believe that which was false i.e. leading to the statement/question from Mr Halper in relation to hacking, as if to imply that Mr Trump was responsible for ‘hacking’.
As events have moved on since where it has emerged that it was Mr Steele who wrote the Trump dossier as a means to aid and abet Hillary Clinton, this means that it may well also be MI6 who working alongside Mr Halper were the ones who placed the *thought* that it was Russians who were in possession of dirt on Hillary – and as such is what then ensured that Mr Trump would then be incriminated if Mr Trump was suspected of hacking into that which had been implied had been stolen by the Russians – none of which was actually the case at all.
As far as I am aware, no emails at any time were hacked – they were leaked, or suspected as having been leaked by our good friend Julian Assange, presumably as a means to expose Mr Steele and MI6’s dodgy dealings.
It can be no coincidence that another of the names in the new article as above is that of Alexander Downer, the Australian High Commissioner to the UK – whom Julian Assange first mentioned in the series of tweets that you provided a link to. If Mr Assange actually tweeted about Mr Downer’s equally nefarious hand in matters on 22 March 2018, as if by a remarkable coincidence, Australia then expelled 2 diplomats yesterday, 25 March 2018.
As a means for the West to not continue to have its dirty laundry aired and questioned in public, instead, the focus is on those pesky Russians – who actually have by all accounts been right royally stitched up by the West.
Any challenge to that narrative likely runs the risk of being labelled as troll or, as I like to put it – a tea-roll.
sag rising… thanks for the continued commentary!
you really need to post over at moon of alabama too… thanks for the daily caller link on papadopoulos /halper…
cheers james
Apologies if this has already been posted.
The Court of Protection ruling allowing blood samples to be taken from the Skripals has been published here:
https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/sshd-v-skripal-and-another-20180322.pdf
Johnson’s a liar? Shock horror. A man who declines to engage brain before operating trap? Wow, that’s news. An old-school showman who ignores the always-necessary caveats and scrutiny inherent to science and the law alike? Well, fuck me with a ragman’s trumpet.
Closely related agent = (unable to)walk like a novichok, (disables)talk like a novichok, permanently destroys brains like a novchichok and is chemically similar to novichok. Good enough for me.
You’re saying that it wasn’t Russia, but, at least in passing, that it might have been we or, for extremely obscure motives, Is***l, who put this astoundingly filthy compound* on a Salisbury street. You demand (publicly inaccessible) proof for the contention that this was Russia’s game. But where’s your proof of anything else? I mean, where’s your superior wisdom?
* I really don’t think you could better this one for toxicity, and utter inhumanity of effect. It’s Sarin-plus-terminal-illness, and designed as such
In the Skripals’ poisoning (whether it occurred or not), one should ask the obvious question – cui bono?
Just as in the attack on the PLO Prime Minister’s convoy near border of Gaza and I*rael, the same question should be asked. But who does Adaas blame? Hamas (the local boogie-men for most of the players in the area):
‘Mahmoud Abbas blames Hamas for Gaza attack on PM’s convoy’:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/03/mahmoud-abbas-blames-hamas-gaza-attack-pm-convoy-180320055826397.html
A far likelier culprit springs to mind, the one’s who always pull something out of the hat when a compromise is in the air, but no, Abbas plays the ‘May’ for the PLO.
And another: ‘A Car Bomb Kills 3 P.L.O. Officers in Cyprus’:
https://www.nytimes.com/1988/02/15/world/a-car-bomb-kills-3-plo-officers-in-cyprus.html
Call me a ‘conspiracy theorist’ if you wish, but I smell a rat….
I believe the Skripal affair has everything to do with Syria and planned events (False Flags) in the Middle East.
It’s Abbas’s birthday today. He’s only 83. A Palestinian Authority stooge for I*rael.
Better that than a stooge for Hamas or Assad and other murderers of Palestinians.
We all know who fostered disunity amongst Palestinians since the year dot. Why should Hamas and the PLO who have just come together after years of being disunited be killing each other.
Could it be the lack of will to talk to a united Palestinian community that lies behind these death? When will Israel initiate peace talks? And when will the corrupt PM be removed from office?
So, in the Anglosphere, we have a savage campaign against Mr. Corbyn and similar against the US president. Plus an increasing drumbeat against Russia. Why? Is there a geopolitical purpose?
For example, are significant elements of the transatlantic oligarchy planning war? Say in the Middle East against Hizbollah in Lebanon, extending then into Syria, and inevitably against Iran?
Corbyn on the Left might be expected to oppose such a “preventive war”. Trump might have some residual isolationist impulses that would resist a decision for war.
It is known that Obama set US military machinery into preliminary action for attacking Syria. The overt attack was about to be launched but two factors intervened and Obama had to halt the machinery. The most important factor was the British Parliament and its refusal to go along with the campaign against Syria. Washington and Obama needed the Brits on board. The secondary factor was massive public opposition directly at the indvidual members of Congress. It was unprecedented.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jan/05/john-kerry-us-syria-intervention-plan-britain-obama
Given that experience, the War Parties is both countries under the thumb if the transatlantic oligarchy learned some lessons. Lessons that have been added to those learned with the Iraq War and manipulation of public opinion. We can note the progress of SCL and Cambridge Analytica in their psychological warfare techniques.
From a geopolitical perspective, we have the savage attacks on Corbyn and Trump, the ever escalating anti-Russia meme, and the anti-Hizbollah/Syria/Iran meme. All systematic preparation for war?
It is not well known but McMaster at the NSC had prepared early last year a concept for war against Syria. Trump rejected it but has since markedly changed. He now has a war cabinet with Bolton and Pompeo and Haley as leading hawks at his elbow.
Is the savage attack on Corbyn, not to mention the Skripal Affair, an indicator that UK will this time back a war like the Iraq War in the Middle East?
Not quite like invading Iraq because Iraq, like Afghanistan and Libya, was a poorly-defended country. This is different. Iran, like Syria and Russia, is a well-defended country. There is also China, which must by now realise that it will be next if it doesn’t watch out. Its actions at this juncture will, I suspect, be critical and it too has significant military might.
MJ. Quite so, Iran today is not the broken down wreck that made for easy pickings Iraq. Three times the population, modern weapons, advanced culture, etc. By some accounts, McMaster’s concept for war against Syria involved 160,000 troops, others say 60,000. At any rate a substantial US operation. Trump rejected it….but that was last year before Steeles Dirty Dossier and other psyops got up some mojo.
The major powers with interests in the Middle East should work out diplomatic arrangements to manage the situation. But in the US, the anti-Russia and anti-China psyops are designed to prevent such cooperation. Why? The major powers plus the UN could sort things out and impose a general settlement. A certain small country and its Diaspora might not like that.
Yes, China has interests in the Middle East. Both China and Russia have good relations with Iran, for example. China has a role in the reconstruction of Syria and in the Middle East under its New Silk Route project.
A new major war can open with Israel attacking Hizbollah in Lebanon, then rapidly expand against Syria and Iran. There are a number of scenarios, of course. It is often said in the US that Syria is the path to the Med for Iran and this is unacceptable. There is the pipeline factor also.
Thucydides pointed out that small entities is a shatterbelt situation could trigger a war dragging in the major powers. Thus, implied is the use of diplomacy to arrange things prior to some explosion. We can recall Sarajevo today.
Shut Corbyn up, box in Trump….then war.
I have to say that you may regrettably be right. Why else has this big antisemitism row evolved so closely after the Scripal incident and the CA, given that this happened in 2012? No doubt the demonisation of Russia and the attempt to discredit Corbyn are the continuation of the same process which in this case is the preparation to soften the population. so as to accept hostilities. I fear that this will start with a provocation against Syria or Hezbollah to start with and to test the reactions, but may well escalate.
SA, thx for comment. Yes, this seems to be the situation in our view at SP. The second Iraq War was finalized by the US and UK probably in April 2002 at the Crawford Summit between Bush and Blair. Secret military and covert preparations of all manner were undertaken for month after month to “prepare the battlefield”. Parallel were major psyops to “prepare public opinion” in the US with the Assad as Hitler meme, faux-Churchillianism, WMD, and the like.
John Bolton was one of the main figures in the Bush administration involved in the move to war. Trump just appointed him National Security Advisor beginning duty on April 9. The decision on the Iran nuclear agreement by Trump is due in May. What would be a logical timing for an Israeli strike against Hizbollah in Lebanon? If Trump pulls out and explodes the agreement that might be opportune. If Trump stays in that might also be opportune. Other scenarios are possible, of course, but the idea is that major war could break out.
Some Israeli and US military figures may well be resistant to the politicians’ plans for war. But to what avail? Here is an interesting revelation by an Israeli general that Bolton tried to push Israel into a war against Iran:
“Shaul Mofaz, former Chief of Staff of the Israeli Defense Forces and ex-Minister of Defense, has revealed his experience of working with newly appointed US National Security adviser, John Bolton, during a conference hosted by Yediot Aharonot on March 26, reports The Jerusalem Post……
“”I have known John Bolton since his days as US ambassador to the United Nations. He tried to convince me that Israel must attack Iran,” Shaul Mofaz said.”….
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201803261062905241-bolton-israel-attack-iran/
SA. One of our SP colleagues, a former US ambassador, comments on Clausewitz per war. He reminds that while Clausewitz saw war as another form of politics he also said that inflamed politics can lead to war.
“Clausewitz essentially saw war as the continuation of politics by other means. Most students of Clausewitz focused on his views as to how wars ended. This was true because American Generals didn’t read him until after the Civil war. Lee would not have followed the strategy he did if he had read him when he studied Napoleonic war at West Point.. The reason the “passionately inflamed” comment is so important is that it is tied to how politics starts to become the other means of war. This aspect of Clausewitz gets one into the psychological and moral aspects that pushes political contenders into conflicts where they rely on force and non-rational forces takeover. A preliminary signal that passions are inflamed is the organization of mass protests, the deterioration of language, and generally irrational behavior passed off as excusable or justified. On the external front both Iran and North Korea show signs of recognizing this. Iran has stopped harassing US navy ships in the Persian Gulf and North Korea wants to talk. The same level of awareness is not present in the US domestically.”
Note this news item:
” Shaul Mofaz, former Chief of Staff of the Israeli Defense Forces and ex-Minister of Defense, has revealed his experience of working with newly appointed US National Security adviser, John Bolton, during a conference hosted by Yediot Aharonot on March 26, reports The Jerusalem Post.
“I have known John Bolton since his days as US ambassador to the United Nations. He tried to convince me that Israel must attack Iran,” Shaul Mofaz said.”
salus – and SA,
If you really want to throw a wobbly into things, try this:- if it is understood that Iraq was a bad idea, not least for the Dodgy Dossier / WMD etc, followed by Libya, et al – along the way, there is another dispute that is much less obvious which is emerging onto the world stage.
If Salisbury is evolving into the new Sarajevo 100 or so years on, I just happened to espy a tweet between the Conservative MP for Salisbury, John Glen and someone called Mohamed Nasheed just after Mr Skripal and his daughter were poisoned.
https://twitter.com/MohamedNasheed/status/972835743516127234
At the risk of putting my foot in it for making such a comment, if doing so would imply I am a Russian troll, it is perhaps because Salisbury is such a quaint English town/city, that made me wonder who Mr Nasheed might be, and why on earth would he be keeping his ‘good friend’ the Conservative MP for Salisbury in his ‘thoughts’ in relation to what happened to Mr Skripal.
If by now, one and all are wondering what on earth has the incident in Salisbury got to do with someone who ‘just happens’ to be a) close to the Conservative MP for Salisbury and b) that person ‘just happens’ to be the now former but otherwise first democratically elected President of the Maldives – then no doubt, you will be as startled as I when I discovered this unusual and peculiar fact recently.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohamed_Nasheed
This is interesting – and almost certainly pertinent, even if at the same time, what goes on in the Maldives seemingly has nothing at all to do with Salisbury, or for that matters, the Russians, or even Syria. Mr Mohamed, if you care to peruse his Wikipedia entry, is an interesting chap.
To those who would deem Russia to be responsible for everything irrespective of proof, fact or reason, he is therefore the ideal candidate to represent Western ‘values’ in the Maldives’, in their pursuit of health, happiness and global prosperity. To the locals however, they consider Mr Mohamed to be a) a terrorist, and b) a traitor and for such indiscretions banged him up for, by a remarkable coincidence, 13 years, just as had been the case with Sergei Skripal also, for his similar indiscretions towards his mother country, Russia.
This was in 2015. However, just as with Mr Skripal, HM government, and presumably Mr Nasheed’s ‘good friend’ the Salisbury Conservative MP John Glen came to his rescue and Mr Nasheed is now also residing (once more) in the Nest of Traitorous Vipers formerly known as Salisbury.
Completely baffled at this unexpected and strange turn of events, this caused me to look a bit more closely at Mr Nasheed – and another strange fact emerged. Guess where the Consulate for the Maldives is based in the UK? I will give you one clue only – the first letter is an ‘S’. Yes, that is quite correct – Salisbury.
The article below is from 2010 but refers to the period between 2003 – 2008:-
http://www.salisburyjournal.co.uk/news/salisbury/salisburynews/8722200.Renewing_old_friendships_with_the_Maldives/
Salisbury was home to a group of Maldivian exiles for five years from 2003, and became the launch pad for their campaign for democracy.
President Mohamed Nasheed, a former political prisoner, went to school with Mr Hardingham, who founded the Friends. His cottage in Friary Lane is now the Maldives’ Honorary Consulate.
It is perhaps fair to suggest that ‘democracy’ can be replaced with ‘interference’ in democracy, and ‘political prisoner’ can be replaced with traitorous terrorist.
All of which places a rather peculiar light on the tweet made by Mr Nasheed to his good friend, the Conservative MP for Salisbury John Glen, in the direct aftermath of the poisoning of another traitor to another country, in the form of Mr Sergei Skripal and Russia, who also just happens to reside in Salisbury.
By way of completing this comment, I conducted a search on ‘why is maldives politically important’ and this is one of the results which came up:-
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/08/maldives-crisis-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-political-turmoil.html
This article from CNBC is ‘all you need to know’ about political turmoil in the Maldives at this time – the article is dated 8 February 2018 – or, just under 4 weeks prior to the poisoning of Sergei Skripal.
Mr Nasheed is centre-stage again. ‘Climate change’ my foot! As the article also states, Mr Nasheed was convicted on terrorism charges. The United States and the UN both have a lot to say about the political turmoil in the Maldives – which I am quite certain has nothing whatsoever do do with climate change. Regime change perhaps but climate change – no. It does however make me think ‘White Helmets’ for some bizarre reason.
I am not entirely clear as to why the Maldives has become a hot-spot politically, or why it should attract such consternation from both the US and the UN at this time. I suspect that the Conservative MP for Salisbury John Glen, given his links to Mr Nasheed, is rather more concerned about the restoration of ‘democracy’ to the Maldives and the health of Sergei Skripal, as if to somehow imply that the two things are inexplicably linked than he is concerned about the good people of Salisbury whom he has been elected to serve.
SR. Rather interesting. Salisbury a veritable nest of intrigue although a nice cathedral.
India and China have competing interests in Maldives. The geopolitical context is the present West vs East game. That is, for example, the alignment of US-India-Japan-Australia vs. China. It is the new variation of containment of the Eurasian landmass/China. The containment game on the Eurasian landmass/Russia we see unfolding since the Orange Revolution then next the US coup in Ukraine but that is a separate topic.
The South China Morning Post details the Maldives matter and does cover Nasheed:
….”the Maldives went through a period of political uncertainty from 1965 to 1978 when Maumoon Abdul Gayoom began his 30-year rule as president. Gayoom was a staunch friend of India and in 1988 an Indian military intervention saved his presidency from a small army of Sri Lankan Tamil mercenaries employed by Gayoom’s predecessor. Gayoom ruled with a heavy hand and opposition to him kept growing.
In 2008 Mohamed Nasheed, a British-educated opponent, succeeded Gayoom. Nasheed was Amnesty International’s 1991 prisoner of conscience – Gayoom arrested him about 20 times in all. His struggles won him many friends not only in Britain but also more importantly in India. But the Gayoom faction never really accepted Nasheed and its machinations kept things on a boil until they finally forced Nasheed out of office in 2012.
However, something happened during Nasheed’s presidency that opened a door to China’s entry into the Maldives. In 2012 Nasheed’s successor, Mohamed Waheed, cancelled the previous regime’s decision to award the US$500 million contract to manage Male international airport to an Indian company, GMR. It seemed as if it was a punishment to the Indian establishment, which seemed to be supporting Nasheed. Many in India even suspected China’s hand in it…..”
Sorry, the South China Morning Post page is:
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/2134327/indias-dilemma-maldives-it-time-deal-chinese-influence
Salus,
By way of response to your link to the SCMP and the Maldives (as there is no means to hit ‘reply’ on that post):-
That was the most fascinating explanation of Sino-Indian tensions – not least as I am historically familiar with the SCMP for having twice lived in HK – on each occasion, pre-1997.
Rather than make me a Russian troll, I think I must be a Chinese troll instead.
SR. The general lines of US foreign policy were updated in an elite bipartisan consensus achieved during 2005-2008 and was ready for whichever party won the election. The overall Cold War containment of the Eurasian landmass remained in place. Obama updated the Pacific part with his “pivot” policy. This policy to contain China is based on the Indo-Pacific concept which aligns the US-India-Japan-Australia against China. Continued under Trump.
The rationale is that the post WWII system must remain in place with the “Atlantic” world hegemonic. Russia and China are targeted because they are said to be “revisionist” powers who want to change things. They advocate a multipolar world, pluralist, rather than the West’s hegemonic world.
Have been in Beijing a number of times over last decade not yet to HK. Did you notice NK Leader Kim appears to be in Beijing just now? Interesting development.
salus,
No, I hadn’t spotted that re: NK Leader Kim, yet.
Thank you for the explanation – it is interesting to note the choice of words used to describe the W vs E scenario. I acknowledge that the West was hegemonic, but in a past-tense sense – and would instead suggest that it is because labels are all mixed up, so that what once meant something now means the opposite, that is what causes so much present confusion.
For example, the word ‘pluralist’ or pluralism even – to me, is that which is causing those tensions which undoubtedly are present in the world today. Loosely speaking, it is the West who in pursuing ever more liberal policies (i.e. ‘neo-‘) which has resulted in the one-size fits all being sought elsewhere in the world, which cannot work – not the Russians or Chinese who do this. The distinctions are clearer in the East: Russia is Russian and China is Chinese.
Who, or what are ‘we’ who live in the West? The West. What does that mean?
Again, loosely speaking, Russia’s and China’s ambitions are more easy to understand – they simply want to reassert their own place in the world, which to some would always be seen as ‘progressive’, ‘expansionist’, or more simply, as a threat to the West, who by and large is becoming more impotent despite its vast weaponry.
If the West possesses the means to destroy us all, who then is the greater threat? Those who devise new ways of doing things – the Chinese are not known as merchants for 5,000 years for no good reason – or, is it we, ourselves, who simply say to all those who disagree with us ‘you are the enemy’? Does that ‘accusation’ not cause or elicit a threat to evolve?
Isn’t an enemy supposed to be more definable? The enemy is not supposed to be our neighbour – such as was the case in the Stalinist Soviet Union.
If the West feels threatened, particularly by China, why does it? Why does it not look towards China and say – WOW! Your buildings are fantastic. They are fantastic, the irony being that many Chinese infrastructure projects are achieved by using Western architects. So why then do we not do the same? Why do we say, things cannot be done, instead of acknowledging and utilising the talents who do have, obliging or forcing that talent to find outlets – such as in China, or the Middle East etc.
We no longer attract or encouraged talent (not ‘to’ the UK but from within the UK), we either quash what may be present, or we export it – or, worse still, we endorse that which is not sound. We then blame everyone else for our failures that are guaranteed to arise. I do not consider this as something to be proud of but as something to be ashamed of.
We learn not from all being the same but from allowing, expecting, encouraging challenge to be made to our ideas – with what is left being what is of value.
An attack on you is an attack on all those of us still capable of thoughtful analysis and common sense.
As per your appeal, herewith another flagrantly libellous and richly deserved heads up on Boris The Spider:
https://hat4uk.wordpress.com/2018/03/26/brexit-bojo-why-johnsons-role-in-the-skripal-hysteria-confirms-his-membership-of-the-military-industrial-complex/
‘Antisemitism’ ..Piss Excuse For Genocide.. I can Invent a Word..Cos it’s What I Do
@Maureen
“I think the poison in the luggage story is now not being given credence The car ventilation system as a Means of dispersal has also gone west”
Yes, I noticed that, but we need to bear in mind that crumbs are thrown out to the greedy pigeons in the Uk media on a daily basis so that they can have an “exclusive” and headline. These crumbs, usually a new theory on how the Skripal’s were poisoned, purportedly come from unnamed “intelligence sources”.
One day it will be the Mail, the next the Times, the next the Telegraph, then the Sun, etcetera. So far, correct me if I am wrong, these “sources” (real or imagined by the newspapers) have suggested:
Julia’s Suitcase
Julia’s perfume
Julia’s Clothes
Mini Drone
BMW door handle
BMW ventilation system
Flowers in a graveyard
aerosol can spray in face
poison in restaurant food
poison in pub drink
The latest crumb hurled at us is the Skripal house doorknob..
What will be the next one? Why believe any of them?
I think it is a good idea to investigate each claim on its merits and fill any gaps in the claims, thus I found out the name of her boyfriend and will now discover his parent’s identities.
By doing so, I can judge whether the initial claims made by Viktoria and Tamara are valid or not, irrespective of the latest “evidence” published via unnamed “sources”.
We are being hoodwinked by our owners as usual in a carefully orchestrated chess game, but often the chess-master, trapped as he is in admiration of his own clever game and intent on victory, fails to see the trap he has fallen into because of his earlier moves.
He also fails to take into account that the slave may smash the chessboard in a rage, but that is another story
“Julia’s Suitcase
Julia’s perfume
Julia’s Clothes
Mini Drone
BMW door handle
BMW ventilation system
Flowers in a graveyard
aerosol can spray in face
poison in restaurant food
poison in pub drink
The latest crumb hurled at us is the Skripal house doorknob..
What will be the next one? Why believe any of them?”
Got to wonder how all of the team members disappeared into thin air too.
Doesn’t Salisbury have any surveillance cameras? So they’re well behind Dubai then?
I asked “Is there one public figure on the entire British left who explicitly opposes J—-h racism?”
Is there even a single figure who is willing to defend Kalen Ockerman (Mear One) who drew the excellent mural?
The UK has gone to the dogs since the 1970s, there is no hope, it”s just a vast soulless wasteland of broken promises, broken dreams, shattered communities, hypocrisy, greedy landlords and castrated socialists. You will not find a single figure to stand up because they know their fate, crucifixion by shop room dummies broadcast live to their families and friends. Time to emigrate, my friend!
Emigrate? To where?
maybe Galloway?
I meant George Galloway not emigrate to Galway 🙂
n Waht’s That
Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania have summoned the Russian envoys to their governments.
Russian ambassadors ‘summoned by EU neighbours’
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-43541256
11 mins ago
The screws are being turned.
Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania have summoned the Russian envoys to their governments.
OMG
Russia will be quaking.
And as for the Russians wanting to take over any of the above states – you must be joking.
Even the locals don’t want them.
There is about 3,000,000 from them here in Britain not to mention Germany etc who are flooded as well.
They will soon be so empty the EU can put them up for auction as a abandoned properties.
A follow up.
Russia responding.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-03-26/trump-expel-60-russian-diplomats-shut-seattle-consulate
Thanks to Maureen up thread, according to the Telegraph, Sergei has a mother, brother and other relatives in Russia. However as of the time of the court case several days ago, The hospital say they have not been approached by anyone known to the patients to enquire of their welfare, and The SSHD Have not sought to make contact with them.
This is not only very strange, but begs the question how inhuman the Sec State Home Dept are and how uncaring the Skripals relatives are. Or is there another reason?
Some people here have been trying to dig up more information about Yulia Skripal. This article in the Daily Mail was published early on and some “facts” have changed since then but it does provide useful background info.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5514907/Sergei-Skripals-daughter-Yulia-dating-secret-service-agent.html
Thanks, the comments section was interesting!