Trump expels 60 Russians, closes Seattle consulate after UK chemical attack - officials

[juice777]

The Netherlands has decided not to go. Hopefully many others countries will follow.

And Italy they was on the Ball there.

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[jenny2017]

  KGB tossers. 

[Thongkorn]

Some one posted on another thread saying what can little Britain do against a mighty Russia. I posted Britain is still number one in the world for soft power. I got laughed at. Well now you see soft power swing into action. No bombs or bullets.

[chickenslegs]

6 minutes ago, janclaes47 said:

How about this?

 

https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201803231062843753-moscow-nerve-gas-russia/

 

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has said that Russia has never had a nerve agent called "Novichok," saying that those who say otherwise do not have full information on the issue.

 

and

 

Russia has strongly rejected the accusations and offered to assist in the investigation. However, Moscow's request for samples of the chemical substance used to poison Skripal was denied.

 

From the Sputnik news website "about us" - Sputnik International's predecessors are the state-run news agency RIA Novosti and the Voice of Russia radio service, which were disbanded in 2013. As such, I don't think it can be trusted to provide unbiased information - just my opinion..

 

 

 

[jenny2017]

1 minute ago, Thongkorn said:

Some one posted on another thread saying what can little Britain do against a mighty Russia. I posted Britain is still number one in the world for soft power. I got laughed at. Well now you see soft power swing into action. No bombs or bullets.

Just wait for the egg then......................

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Where the UK could really hurt Russia and the Russians over the nerve agent attack would be to close the use of the UK as a destination for corrupt Russian oligarchs to stash their ill-gotten gains and buy up good sized portions of the UK with those funds.

 

The UK has threatened to crack down on that kind of dirty money coming from Russia into the UK, but whether they will actually do it, and look at the funds/investments already in the country in terms of their legitimacy, is another question.

 

[jenny2017]

2 minutes ago, chickenslegs said:

 

From the Sputnik news website "about us" - Sputnik International's predecessors are the state-run news agency RIA Novosti and the Voice of Russia radio service, which were disbanded in 2013. As such, I don't think it can be trusted to provide unbiased information - just my opinion..

 

 

 

Nastrovie Comrad@! 

[janclaes47]

3 minutes ago, chickenslegs said:

 

From the Sputnik news website "about us" - Sputnik International's predecessors are the state-run news agency RIA Novosti and the Voice of Russia radio service, which were disbanded in 2013. As such, I don't think it can be trusted to provide unbiased information - just my opinion..

 

 

 

 Obviously it wasn't posted by the guardian. Ever looked up which side they are?

[Morch]

2 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

Where the UK could really hurt Russia and the Russians over the nerve agent attack would be to close the use of the UK as a destination for corrupt Russian oligarchs to stash their ill-gotten gains and buy up good sized portions of the UK with those funds.

 

The UK has threatened to crack down on that kind of dirty money coming from Russia into the UK, but whether they will actually do it, and look at the funds/investments already in the country in terms of their legitimacy, is another question.

 

 

Would this hurt Putin? Or Russian oligarchs supporting/on good terms with him? I'm not saying that cracking down on such things is bad, quite the opposite. Just that if it targets the "wrong" oligarchs or make the "right" oligarchs more dependent on Putin, it may actually strengthen his hold on power.

 

Kicking out some diplomats is mostly show. Not something which would seriously hurt or intimidate Russia/Putin. May even improve his support ratings back home. Killing the World Cup, on the other hand, is more like it - Russians won't be pleased, and harder to spin.

[Morch]

13 minutes ago, Thongkorn said:

Some one posted on another thread saying what can little Britain do against a mighty Russia. I posted Britain is still number one in the world for soft power. I got laughed at. Well now you see soft power swing into action. No bombs or bullets.

 

Yes, hurray for "soft power", which managed to...wait for it....have Russian diplomats kicked out. A bit of an anticlimax that. Putin must be frantic with worry and full of remorse.

[CGW]

So guilty as charged without a shred of factual evidence, based on factual evidence from unbiased sources! seriously!! same as they were guilty of "manipulating" the US election? You all have a lot more faith in your respective "governments" than I do, they don't have a great track history for telling the truth do they, but hey that is quickly forgotten in the haste to "convict" have you considered "they" just may have a ulterior motive, just as they have had in the past?

Sure the war mongers in power will be rubbing their hands together in glee! Sure they will be doing their damnedest to protect us!

[Credo]

Well done, Trump.

[juice777]

So guilty as charged without a shred of factual evidence, based on factual evidence from unbiased sources! seriously!! same as they were guilty of "manipulating" the US election? You all have a lot more faith in your respective "governments" than I do, they don't have a great track history for telling the truth do they, but hey that is quickly forgotten in the haste to "convict" have you considered "they" just may have a ulterior motive, just as they have had in the past?
Sure the war mongers in power will be rubbing their hands together in glee! Sure they will be doing their damnedest to protect us! [emoji2]

The difference is there is nothing positive for us to gain from this.

"have you considered "they" just may have a ulterior motive, just as they have had in the past?"

What is it then?

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[Guest]

Sputnik was the original Russian troll - propaganda "news" site. It's even a lot worse than Russia Today (RT) is today. I'm surprise that it's still running as RT has largely taken it's role. 

 

 

 

 

[CGW]

3 minutes ago, juice777 said:

"have you considered "they" just may have a ulterior motive, just as they have had in the past?"
What is it then?

Don't know? what was the ulterior motive for lying about Iraq?

If there is no ulterior motive - give us the facts, its all hearsay at this time!

[chickenslegs]

15 minutes ago, janclaes47 said:

 Obviously it wasn't posted by the guardian. Ever looked up which side they are?

 

I understand what you are saying. Yes, we should be mistrustful of all sources that have an obvious bias. I would include in that many UK news sources.

 

Sputnik is state sponsored and very obviously so. I don't believe it can be compared with any UK news source.

 

I didn't mention the UK Guardian, but I am a reader. It is not known for its pro-government stance (quite the opposite).

 

The sheer weight of evidence and opinion from numerous sources can't be denied.

 

 

[citybiker]

  KGB tossers. 

These days, I think it's FSB ;-)

As for those advocating boycotting world cup, i understnd this reaction however to be fair that would penalise fans as they've already planned this trip in advance, I dislike Wendy ball however a partial international response in diplomatic terms has caught Russia off guard.

Fair play to Trump, Seattle has a submarine base and Airplane manufacturer, expelling 60 undisclosed intelligence operatives (spies) sends a clear message.

Lastly, I don't expect this world cup will go smooth either, Russian ultras will make visiting the event a nightmare, for both visiting fans and authorities alike.

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[janclaes47]

Just now, citybiker said:

Fair play to Trump, Seattle has a submarine base and Airplane manufacturer, expelling 60 undisclosed intelligence operatives (spies) sends a clear message.

 But but, Trump would never do something that dissatisfied his "Master":.

[juice777]

Don't know? what was the ulterior motive for lying about Iraq?

If there is no ulterior motive - give us the facts, its all hearsay at this time!

The ulterior motive Iraq was probably to get control of the oil fields that's what I thought at the time and that's why I marched through London against it.

 

That's not the reason here because the West only starts wars against countries we can beat with one hand behind our back.

 

 

 

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[geriatrickid]

1 hour ago, hyku1147 said:

Let's not be hasty:

 

What are you? A 12 year old boy who just discovered his penis? Those photoshopped and enhanced  images of people are certainly not of Russians who visit Thailand, so I don't know what you are so excited about. Add 25+ kilos and  10-20 years with the the fashion sense of a Tesco Lotus  shopper and you will be more accurate.

 

42 minutes ago, janclaes47 said:

How about this?

https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201803231062843753-moscow-nerve-gas-russia/

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has said that Russia has never had a nerve agent called "Novichok," saying that those who say otherwise do not have full information on the issue.

and

Russia has strongly rejected the accusations and offered to assist in the investigation. However, Moscow's request for samples of the chemical substance used to poison Skripal was denied.

Remember when the Russians were caught with the state sponsored doping system and they denied it and claimed it was a fabrication? Then the lies unraveled. That's why the Russian teams were banned at the Olympics.  Nothing has changed since then. The Russians  commit terrible illegal acts and then lie when caught redhanded.  No one else had anything to gain from this.

[juice777]

Now that our Home Secerty Boris The Clown as compared The World cup and Putin to Hitler and the Olympic's I don't see how we can't pull out of the World Cup.Let's not forget that if by some absolute miracle we win it our Captain will have to accept the cup from Putin and that goes for all Nato countries imagine that.

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[citybiker]

Now that our Home Secerty Boris The Clown as compared The World cup and Putin to Hitler and the Olympic's I don't see how we can't pull out of the World Cup.Let's not forget that if by some absolute miracle we win it our Captain will have to accept the cup from Putin and that goes for all Nato countries imagine that.

 

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Boris off the cuff remarks should be treated in the context it deserves.

 

I think football is the least of England’s worries when visiting Russia, and miracles may help.

 

As this situation is evolving we’ll wait & see Moscow’s response to this small (less than 20 Countries) diplomatic issue, when Asia & South America & Africa follow them I’ll pay attention.

 

 

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[webfact]

U.S., EU to expel more than 100 Russian diplomats over poisoning of double agent

By Michael Holden and Roberta Rampton

 

The Russian flag flies on the Consulate-General of the Russian Federation in Manhattan in New York City, March 26, 2018. REUTERS/Mike Segar

 

LONDON/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Monday it would expel 60 Russian diplomats, joining governments across Europe in punishing the Kremlin for a nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy in Britain that they have blamed on Moscow.

 

It was the strongest action that U.S. President Donald Trump had taken against Russia since coming to office. He has been criticized by Democrats and members of his own Republican Party for failing to be tough enough on Russia over U.S. allegations of Russian meddling in the U.S. electoral system including the 2016 presidential campaign.

 

British Prime Minister Theresa May, welcoming the show of solidarity, said 18 countries had announced plans to expel Russian officials. Those included 14 European Union countries. In total, 100 Russian diplomats were being removed, the biggest Western expulsion of Russian diplomats since the height of the Cold War.

 

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Twitter that Monday's "extraordinary international response by our allies stands in history as the largest collective expulsion of Russian intelligence officers ever and will help defend our shared security."

 

May said the coordinated measures sent the "strongest signal to Russia that it cannot continue to flout international law."

 

Britain had evidence Russia has investigated ways of distributing nerve agents for assassinations, May told parliament.

 

Russia's Foreign Ministry called the expulsions a "provocative gesture." The Kremlin spokesman said the West was making a "mistake" and that President Vladimir Putin would make a final decision about Russia's response.

 

Moscow has denied being behind the attack on Sergei Skripal and his daughter in the southern English city of Salisbury.

 

Skripal, 66, and Yulia Skripal, 33, were found unconscious on a public bench in a shopping centre on March 4 and remain critically ill in hospital.

 

"We assess that more than 130 people in Salisbury could have been potentially exposed to this nerve agent," May said.

 

Monday's wave of expulsions followed EU leaders saying last week that evidence presented by May of Russian involvement in the attack was a solid basis for further action.

 

The staff expelled by Washington includes 12 people identified by the United States as intelligence officers from Russia's mission to the United Nations headquarters in New York. They were involved in activities outside their official capacity and an abuse of their privileges of residence, U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley said.

 

Russian U.N. ambassador Vassily Nebenzia called it "a very unfortunate, very unfriendly move."

 

Trump also ordered the closure of the Russian consulate in Seattle because of its proximity to a U.S. submarine base and planemaker and defence contractor Boeing Co <BA.N>, a senior U.S. official said. Seattle was a hub of Russian cyber espionage, both political and commercial, according to two U.S. intelligence officials.

 

The administration officials said "well over 100 intelligence officers" operated in the United States, and Washington's action cuts 60 of them.

 

ONE WEEK TO LEAVE

 

The envoys and their families have been given a week to leave the United States, according to one U.S. official.

 

Trump, who before he took office in January last year promised warmer ties with Putin, last week congratulated the Russian leader on his re-election, drawing criticism from Republicans and Democrats alike. Trump said the two leaders had made tentative plans to meet in the "not too distant future."

 

He did not bring up the poisoning attack in his phone call with Putin.

 

Trump himself was silent on Monday on Twitter, where he often comments about his policy decisions. But the White House later said it would like to have a "cooperative relationship" with Russia.

 

"The president wants to work with the Russians but their actions sometimes don't allow that to happen," White House spokesman Raj Shah told a news briefing. "The poisoning in the U.K. that has kind of led to today's announcement was a very brazen action. It was a reckless action."

 

U.S. lawmakers largely welcomed Trump's move on Monday.

 

Washington had already imposed sanctions on Russian citizens and firms for U.S. election meddling and cyber attacks but put off targeting oligarchs and government officials close to Putin.

 

"Punishing diplomats is not a direct threat to Putin's power or money. Further, our previous efforts to kick out diplomats has done little to change Kremlin behaviour," said former CIA officer John Sipher, who served in Moscow and ran the agency's Russia operations.

 

U.S. officials said the scale of the expulsions was based not only on the expansion of Russian espionage in the United States, but also on its increasing focus on critical infrastructure targets such as electrical grids, financial networks, transportation and healthcare.

 

Trump has been criticized in the United States for doing too little to punish Russia for the election meddling and other actions, and U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller is looking into whether Trump’s campaign colluded with the Russians, something he denies. Moscow denies interference in the campaign.

 

Skripal's poisoning, which Britain said employed the Soviet-era military-grade nerve agent Novichok, is the first known offensive use of a nerve toxin in Europe since World War Two.

 

The Foreign Ministry said "powerful forces" in the United States and Britain were behind the attack, RIA Novosti agency reported.

 

European Council President Donald Tusk said further measures could be taken in the coming weeks and months. Russia said it would respond in kind.

 

"The response will be symmetrical. We will work on it in the coming days and will respond to every country in turn," the RIA news agency cited an unnamed Foreign Ministry source as saying.

 

The Kremlin has accused Britain of whipping up an anti-Russia campaign and has sought to cast doubt on the British analysis that Moscow was responsible. Russia has already ordered 23 British diplomats out of the country after Britain expelled 23 Russian diplomats.

 

(Reporting by Michael Holden and Elizabeth Piper in London, John Irish in Paris, Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber, Vladimir Soldatkin and Christian Lowe in Moscow, Alissa de Carbonnel in Bulgaria, David Ljunggren in Ottawa, Johan Sennero in Stockholm, David Mardiste in Tallinn; Roberta Rampton, John Walcott, Warren Strobel, Patricia Zengerle, Matt Spetalnick and Mark Hosenball in Washington; Michelle Nichols at the United Nations; Writing by Guy Falconbridge and Yara Bayoumy; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Frances Kerry; and Grant McCool)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-03-27

[FritsSikkink]

8 hours ago, chickenslegs said:

Nobody has claimed that they have 100% proof of Russia's involvement.

The issue is that the nerve agent used in the attack was produced in Russia, but the Russians are refusing to cooperate with the investigation.

 

Quote from the German Foreign Ministry ...

 

They have no proof at all

[YetAnother]

47 minutes ago, webfact said:

Seattle was a hub of Russian cyber espionage, both political and commercial, according to two U.S. intelligence officials.

 

The administration officials said "well over 100 intelligence officers" operated in the United States, and Washington's action cuts 60 of them.

inroads of sorts; just leave the 40 worst ?

[metisdead]

Some off topic posts, troll posts and the replies have been removed. 

[evadgib]

6 hours ago, citybiker said:

 

Boris off the cuff remarks should be treated in the context it deserves.

 

I think football is the least of England’s worries when visiting Russia, and miracles may help.

 

As this situation is evolving we’ll wait & see Moscow’s response to this small (less than 20 Countries) diplomatic issue, when Asia & South America & Africa follow them I’ll pay attention.

 

 

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With the CHOGM on the horizon I suspect member countries to join in too.

[evadgib]

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-commons-statement-on-national-security-and-russia-26-march-2018

[Guest]

Sweden is expelling 1 diplomat. Australia has also joined in expelling 2 Russian diplomats. Well done.

[dick dasterdly]

13 hours ago, FritsSikkink said:

Iraq all over again, no proof at all but need something to distract from local problems.

"need something to distract from local problems"

 

Agree 100%.  A manufactured 'storm in a teacup'.