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Putin calls poisoned ex-spy Skripal a scumbag and traitor

By Dmitry Zhdannikov and Denis Pinchuk

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a session of the Russian Energy Week international forum in Moscow, Russia October 3, 2018. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS

 

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday called Sergei Skripal, a former Russian double agent poisoned in Britain, a scumbag who had betrayed Russia.

 

Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found slumped on a public bench in the English city of Salisbury in March. Britain says they were poisoned with a nerve agent administered by Russian intelligence officers.

 

Russia denies involvement in the affair, which has deepened its international isolation.

 

"I see that some of your colleagues are pushing the theory that Mr Skripal was almost some kind of human rights activist," Putin said at an energy forum in Moscow when asked about the case.

 

"He was simply a spy. A traitor to the motherland. He's simply a scumbag, that's all," Putin added, in remarks that drew applause from parts of the audience.

 

The Russian leader, a former intelligence officer himself, said the Skripal scandal had been artificially exaggerated, but said he thought it would fade from the headlines at some point and that the sooner it quietened down the better.

 

Putin said Moscow was still ready to cooperate with Britain when it came to investigating what happened, an offer London has so far declined to take up.

 

British officials say the poisoning was carried out by Russia's GRU military intelligence agency almost certainly acting with the approval of Russian officials. Russia has denied that.

 

'ONE OF OLDEST PROFESSIONS'

Putin also dismissed the allegation that Russia was responsible for the accidental poisoning of Dawn Sturgess, a Salisbury-area woman who British police said died after coming into contact with the nerve agent Novichok which her partner had found in a discarded perfume bottle.

 

"What, did some guys rock up and start poisoning homeless people over there?" said Putin, repeating a description of Sturgess and her partner used by some Russian state media. "What rubbish."

 

Skripal had served time in a Russian prison for selling information to Britain, and Moscow had agreed to release him as part of a spay swap, said Putin, suggesting Russia therefore had no motive to kill him.

 

"We didn't need to poison anyone over there. This traitor Skripal was caught, he was punished and did five years in prison. We let him go, he left the country and he continued to cooperate there and consult some intelligence services. So what?"

 

The two Russian men Britain accuses of jetting to England to try to murder Skripal said in a TV interview last month that they were innocent tourists who had visited the city of Salisbury to see its cathedral.

 

London says their explanation is so far-fetched as to all but prove Russia's involvement, while investigative website Bellingcat has published a picture of a decorated Russian military intelligence colonel it named as Anatoliy Chepiga who resembles one of the two men Britain caught on CCTV.

 

Putin said spy scandals were nothing new.

 

"Did problems between intelligence services start yesterday?" quipped Putin.

 

"As is well known, espionage, like prostitution, is one of the world's oldest professions."

 

(Writing by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Christian Lowe and)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-10-04

[ezzra]

The man is a joke, he keeps denying what the whole world knows to be the absolut facts about those assassins, and the best he can do is call someone a scumbag, one would argue that what he's doing in Syria, Ukraine/Crimea and Georgia qualify him for this title he so richly deserves...

 

[canopus1969]

Putin was correct, Sergei Skripal was a scumbag who had betrayed Russia.

[BigC]

UK government only have themselves to blame. Harbouring criminals of this caliber is going to up the risk to our nationals.

 

i mean it not like the UK ever go outside our country to assinate someone.

 

i didn’t see anyone crying over Binladen, sassan Husain and other foreign criminals 

 

I wonder what Mi6 would do if a someone defected to russia and starting giving away all of our secrets 

 

which is probably what happened at some extent I mean these attackers seemed to know the layout of our security services very well 

 

almost too well

 

if they carried out the attack then I suspect it was with help from UK miles 

[connda]

I guess the gloves have come off.

[Morch]

Putin's "outburst" (I don't think he actually does that) was apparently "sparked" by this - "I see that some of your colleagues are pushing the theory that Mr Skripal was almost some kind of human rights activist".  Were such theories actually raised? Pushed? By which "colleagues"?

 

And along the same lines, opining that "the Skripal scandal had been artificially exaggerated, but said he thought it would fade from the headlines at some point and that the sooner it quietened down the better.", and making such strong remarks which are sure to be picked by media actually broadcasts the opposite.

[BestB]

3 minutes ago, Morch said:

Putin's "outburst" (I don't think he actually does that) was apparently "sparked" by this - "I see that some of your colleagues are pushing the theory that Mr Skripal was almost some kind of human rights activist".  Were such theories actually raised? Pushed? By which "colleagues"?

 

And along the same lines, opining that "the Skripal scandal had been artificially exaggerated, but said he thought it would fade from the headlines at some point and that the sooner it quietened down the better.", and making such strong remarks which are sure to be picked by media actually broadcasts the opposite.

True but does not make his remark less factual or untrue

[Morch]

5 minutes ago, BigC said:

UK government only have themselves to blame. Harbouring criminals of this caliber is going to up the risk to our nationals.

 

i mean it not like the UK ever go outside our country to assinate someone.

 

i didn’t see anyone crying over Binladen, sassan Husain and other foreign criminals 

 

I wonder what Mi6 would do if a someone defected to russia and starting giving away all of our secrets 

 

which is probably what happened at some extent I mean these attackers seemed to know the layout of our security services very well 

 

almost too well

 

if they carried out the attack then I suspect it was with help from UK miles 

 

Skripal was spying for the UK. That's a crime from Russia's point of view, not the UK's. And, of course, Russia does take in former spies and traitors who worked on its behalf, but that's apparently alright. As for "our nationals", I believe Skripal has been given citizenship quite a while back.

 

And do tell, which former Russian spy was murdered, by UK agencies, on Russian soil? Your "examples" have nothing to do with the topic, other than deflection fodder.

[Morch]

1 minute ago, BestB said:

True but does not make his remark less factual or untrue

 

His remark was a response to alleged comments/theories portraying Skripal as something else. I don't know that such comments were actually made. And again, if he wanted this to quiet down, he wouldn't have made the remark.

[BestB]

22 minutes ago, Morch said:

 

His remark was a response to alleged comments/theories portraying Skripal as something else. I don't know that such comments were actually made. And again, if he wanted this to quiet down, he wouldn't have made the remark.

And again his remarks are a fact

[Morch]

4 minutes ago, BestB said:

And again his remarks are a fact

 

[Ulic]

Both sides are partially correct. Skripal was a traitor to Russia, and the long vindictive memory of a

Russian dictator eventually took his revenge after Skripal had outlived his usefulness to

the Russians who traded him in a spy swap. You know Putin is lying because his

lips are moving, end of story.

Edited October 4, 2018 by Ulic

[guest879]

oh, he was a bad guy. well that makes it ok.

[freebyrd]

6 hours ago, ezzra said:

The man is a joke, he keeps denying what the whole world knows to be the absolut facts about those assassins, and the best he can do is call someone a scumbag, one would argue that what he's doing in Syria, Ukraine/Crimea and Georgia qualify him for this title he so richly deserves...

 

 

The world gets it from both ends these days, Putin is the Russian version of Trump - although he's probably smarter ????.

[Chomper Higgot]

If Putin is hoping this story is going to fade away he’s now got this to answer for:

 

 

http://www.itv.com/news/2018-10-04/russian-intelligence-blamed-for-a-series-of-cyber-attacks/

[BestB]

5 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

If Putin is hoping this story is going to fade away he’s now got this to answer for:

 

 

http://www.itv.com/news/2018-10-04/russian-intelligence-blamed-for-a-series-of-cyber-attacks/

Well if UK said so then it must be true????????????

[Elenax]

I Agree with Putin, No matter which side you are on its the loyalty to the nation that matters and that's what Sergei failed in.. 

[bristolboy]

1 hour ago, Elenax said:

I Agree with Putin, No matter which side you are on its the loyalty to the nation that matters and that's what Sergei failed in.. 

Let us now praise loyal Nazis.

[BestB]

5 minutes ago, bristolboy said:

Let us now praise loyal Nazis.

Do not be silly , he did not change sides because of ideology.

 

He changed sites because MI6 paid better

[Justgrazing]

I'll wager comrade Vlad didn't send 'em a get well card when they were hospitalised ..

[Chomper Higgot]

1 hour ago, BestB said:

Do not be silly , he did not change sides because of ideology.

 

He changed sites because MI6 paid better

And you know this because?

[bristolboy]

1 hour ago, BestB said:

Do not be silly , he did not change sides because of ideology.

 

He changed sites because MI6 paid better

My reply was to this:

"I Agree with Putin, No matter which side you are on its the loyalty to the nation that matters and that's what Sergei failed in.. "

Edited October 4, 2018 by bristolboy

[Morch]

2 hours ago, BestB said:

Well if UK said so then it must be true????????????

 

Did you even bother reading the linked article? Not just the UK.

[Odysseus123]

One up to the Russians..

[Basil B]

So it was OK for Russia to honour Kim Philby and the other treasonous scums...

 

 

[Basil B]

3 minutes ago, Odysseus123 said:

One up to the Russians..

Four GRU agents just kicked out the Netherlands...

 

Quote

Dutch security services say they expelled four Russians over a cyber attack plot targeting the global chemical weapons watchdog.

The operation by Russia's GRU military intelligence allegedly targeted the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague in April.

The OPCW has been probing the chemical attack on a Russian ex-spy in the UK.

Meanwhile, the US has indicted seven Russians with hacking anti-doping agencies and other organisations.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-45746837

[Odysseus123]

One all to the Russians and the Netherlands-gad these e????mojis are all over the place..

[Scott]

Conspiracy post reported and removed.  

 

[BestB]

2 hours ago, Morch said:

 

Did you even bother reading the linked article? Not just the UK.

Did you even bother to see there is and was no evidence as usual just finger pointing 

[Morch]

3 minutes ago, BestB said:

Did you even bother to see there is and was no evidence as usual just finger pointing 

 

Oh, that song and dance again?

Even if one accepts your version, it doesn't stack up - Russian agents were kicked out of another European country simply on the UK's word? Simply to satisfy UK wishes? Simply for the Dutch(?!) to pick up a fight with Russia?

 

There were, unless mistaken, a couple of past topics on this bit of news, with more details. You're welcome to pretend its just "finger pointing" though.