US expels 2 Russians after US diplomat attacked in Moscow

[rooster59]

US expels 2 Russians after US diplomat attacked in Moscow

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States last month expelled two Russian officials in response to an attack on an American diplomat by a Russian policeman in Moscow, the State Department said Friday, in a development that was sure to further strain already tense bilateral relations.

The officials were expelled June 17, department spokesman John Kirby told reporters. He didn't immediately provide additional information.

Kirby said the American was attacked June 6 by a Russian guard outside the U.S. Embassy compound. Kirby said the attack was "unprovoked and it endangered the safety of our employee."

The Russian Foreign Ministry claims the American was a CIA agent who refused to provide his identification documents and hit the guard in the face. Moscow says the policeman was fulfilling his duties defending the embassy.

"Instead of the CIA employee, who was in disguise, as we understand, it could have been anyone — a terrorist, an extremist, a suicide bomber," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told state-owned NTV television this week.

Kirby disputed those statements.

"The Russian claim that the policeman was protecting the embassy from an unidentified individual is simply untrue," he told reporters.

A video of the scuffle, released earlier this week by NTV, shows a man exiting a taxi in an area resembling an embassy entrance and striding toward the doors. The guard bursts out of a sentry box and tackles the man, who is able to crawl through the entrance doors. Kirby declined to comment on the video.

The incident was the latest in what the State Department calls harassment and ill-treatment of American diplomats working in Russia. Moscow denies those accusations and says the U.S. is spreading disinformation about Russia.

Ties between Moscow and Washington have sunk to Cold War levels in recent years over Russia's annexation of Crimea, its support of separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine and its actions in Syria.

-- (c) Associated Press 2016-07-09

[sanukjim]

Putin will continue to strut and act as if he has the resolve to go to war with the US or the EU but in reality he knows that unlike in The Cold War area where the advantages were about 60/40 % in favor of The US it is now about 70/30 % and he would not like the results.

[elgordo38]

Like Hitler he wants his legacy to be a powerful one.

[Caps]

They are probably as much to blame as each other...I can see the Yank being all high and mighty not wanting to show his papers but I can also see the Cop being clever about it because he could

[MaxYakov]

I watched the video and, assuming it was unedited, it appeared as though he was proceeding past the guard box when he was rushed by the guard.

It seems to me that some kind of "check-in" procedure with the guard was required in order to enter. Otherwise why station a guard at the door? Perhaps the man forgot or didn't know the procedure or was distracted.

Also, why did the man continue to try to get through the door after being assaulted by the guard?

If a "check-in" procedure was required then how could the guard be faulted for his rapid response? Also, why wouldn't such a guarded door have an electronic lock that could be activated only by the guard?

I know, I know. It's Russia (and I ask too many questions)!

Edited July 9, 2016 by MaxYakov

[Rancid]

Hang on, so a Russian guard outside the US Embassy thought it would be a good idea to attack a diplomat for no reason whatsoever? Was he thinking this would advance his career, did he not like the guys face?

Nothing sounds odd here? So just the generic Putin is a madman bent on world domination (despite not having the military to do so) and planed it all response? Well I guess the main stream media flogging that tired illogical script actually does work.

[ballpoint]

I watched the video and, assuming it was unedited, it appeared as though he was proceeding past the guard box when he was rushed by the guard.

It seems to me that some kind of "check-in" procedure with the guard was required in order to enter. Otherwise why station a guard at the door? Perhaps the man forgot or didn't know the procedure or was distracted.

Also, why did the man continue to try to get through the door after being assaulted by the guard?

If a "check-in" procedure was required then how could the guard be faulted for his rapid response? Also, why wouldn't such a guarded door have an electronic lock that could be activated only by the guard?

I know, I know. It's Russia (and I ask too many questions)!

You mean, give the key to the US embassy to a Russian policeman? Good idea. What could possibly go wrong?

[manutfarang]

Hang on, so a Russian guard outside the US Embassy thought it would be a good idea to attack a diplomat for no reason whatsoever?

That's his job. Anybody rushing by security without identifying themselves should be forcefully stopped. Had it been a terrorist trying to get past and he hadn't forcefully stopped the person, you Russian bashers would complain he didn't do enough.

Amazing how easy fooled people are with this anti-Russian propaganda.

[boomerangutang]

There are some things we don't know about the incident. I didn't see the video, but was there any audio? Did the guard call out to the man to stop?

Did the guard recognize the man he tackled? .....someone who already had clearance?

On the surface, it sounds like the guard was at fault. Yet it's hard to tell for sure.

On the other hand, alacrity is a good quality for a security guard. It's a job where there are thousands of hours of no activity, and then a moment comes along where there's a flurry of intense activity.

I had an American friend who was a security guard at a prison. He told me of a time when a well-dressed man flashed a badge and ID and proceeded to enter. My friend, because he didn't see the ID clearly, went and immediately threw the other man to the floor with an arm-lock. It turns out it was a test to see whether the guard (my friend) was doing his job correctly. The other man was a police officer who purposefully flashed his badge and ID card too fast to identify, in order to test whether the guard was on the ball.

[oxo1947]

Like Hitler he wants his legacy to be a powerful one.

Maybe you should look at the video----before you post your usual 1950s cold war narrative.

Now the video has been released (by Russia) even the state dept is backing away from the incident and saying we are expelling not only because of this incident----but because of harassment of the last 2 years.

The guy jumps out of a Taxi on a hot night 75, with a woollen hat pulled down and a scarf around him----you can see the guard does nothing but try to hold him down.

Edited July 12, 2016 by oxo1947