Anti-Russian hysteria: UK general claims Russia is worse threat than ISIS

RFE/RL
Sat, 24 Nov 2018 16:39 UTC

© Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin

Russia is a "far greater threat" to Britain's national security than Islamic terrorist groups such as the Islamic State (IS), the new head of the British Army has warned.

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph published on November 23, General Mark Carleton-Smith said Britain and its allies "cannot be complacent about the threat Russia poses."

The Russian Embassy in London responded to the comments with a tweet on November 24, saying "Army chief doesn't care about [IS]? Great global strategic vision!"

Carleton-Smith made the comments at a time of heightened tensions between the West and Russia over issues including Moscow's aggression in Ukraine, its alleged election meddling in the United States and Europe, massive international cyberattacks, and the poisoning of a Russian double agent and his daughter in Britain.

Comment: Alleged aggression in Ukraine (NATO aggression and Ukrainian aggression is much worse - and documented). Alleged election meddling (NATO and American meddling in Russia is much worse - and documented). U.S. and Israel are just as guilty if not more for international cyberattacks, and there is no proof 'Russia' poisoned the Skripals. How wrong can you be in one paragraph?

"Russia today indisputably represents a far greater threat to our national security than Islamic extremist threats" such as Al-Qaeda and IS, Carleton-Smith said in his first interview since becoming chief of Britain's General Staff in June.

Comment: Behind this statement is the implication: the UK is more than willing to ally with groups such as al-Qaeda and ISIS if it means fighting Russia. And that's exactly what they've been doing for years.

The 54-year-old former SAS commander said Moscow had "embarked on a systematic effort to explore and exploit Western vulnerabilities, particularly in some of the nontraditional areas of cyber-, space, undersea warfare."

Comment: Because of real Western aggression, hysteria, and arrogance.

With the threat from Islamist groups in the Middle East now reduced, the focus needs to shift to Russia, the British general also said, warning, "We cannot be complacent about the threat Russia poses or leave it uncontested."

Comment: Alternative: simply behave like a normal human by establishing good relations. It's not that hard.

During a visit to Lisbon, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also poked fun at the remarks, saying, "We cannot influence the British government's decisions as to whom they trust to head its armed forces," according to the Interfax news agency.

"I hope they check the appropriateness of such decisions," Lavrov added.

Comment: Here's how RT translated Lavrov's statement: "But I hope they verify these decisions for sanity."

In October, U.K. Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson accused Russia of acting like a "pariah state," whose "reckless and indiscriminate" attacks had left it isolated in the international community.

Comment: We suppose hypocrisy is a traditional British value?

The Russian Foreign Ministry described the accusations as "fantasy."

Britain and most of the West has blamed Russia for a nerve-agent attack on Russian former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in the English city of Salisbury in March. Moscow denies any involvement.

The Skripals survived the poisoning, which used a Soviet-made military nerve agent known as Novichok.

Two other British citizens were exposed to the nerve agent in June, apparently by accident; one of them, Dawn Sturgess, died.

Comment: RT adds:

Moscow has demonstrated that it is "prepared to use military force to secure and expand its own national interests," he told the Telegraph. Head-chopping Islamists apparently pale in comparison.

And western countries never use military force to expand or secure their national interests...

Carleton-Smith was speaking after visiting UK soldiers deployed to the Baltic country of Estonia, where 'Russia scare' proponents have also been known to raise a few eyebrows. ...

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov fired back on Saturday, saying: "That's the worldview of a country that has spelt out its right to use force arbitrarily regardless of UN Security Council resolutions."

In fact, some would argue that fanning fears over 'evil Russia' are instrumental in explaining or justifying increased defense spending. It wouldn't be the first time the UK establishment has done so.

That aside, the latest tough claim from the UK is echoing a similar bizarre statement made by Barack Obama in 2014. Not mincing his words, then-US President also said that Russia was more dangerous than Islamic State. Well, at least that evil has been surpassed by Ebola, according to the American leader.

With the perceived threat from Russia, NATO has not passed up the opportunity to bolster its military presence all the way to Russia's Western border, including the Baltic region where massive war games frequently take place.

Additionally, it emerged in September that London will send troops to the Arctic to "defend" the region from Russia (an internationally recognized Arctic country). Around 800 Royal Marine and Army commandos will be deployed to Norway every winter throughout the next decade according to Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson, who also did not hesitate to call the area the UK's "own backyard."

Lavrov also had this to say:

We can't ban anyone from showing off [their] intellect and political abilities.

Touche.