Russia’s ignoble policy of intolerance and elimination by all possible means of all forms of opposition has manifested itself again in the recent poisoning of Alexei Navalny, an opposition leader and a well-known critic of President Putin. Navalny, 44, suddenly fell ill on a flight to Moscow from Tomsk, a city in Siberia. He had black tea at an airport cafeteria before boarding the plane that morning and is believed to have been poisoned. Later, his plane made an emergency landing in Omsk and he was treated at the Omsk Emergency Hospital. And later he was transferred to Berlin and experts and German authorities have confirmed, after a detoxicological test, that he was poisoned with a chemical nerve agent from the Novichok group, a military-grade neurotoxin, the same biological weapon that was used in the poisoning of a former Russian spy and his daughter in the UK about two and a half years ago. This is not the first time Mr. Navalny has been poisoned. Since then, the German government and world leaders have condemned the attack. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has demanded that the Russian government provide an explanation for the incident and also threatened to stop the two countries’ gas pipeline project. The very expensive and ambitious but controversial project is currently in the final stage. European Union officials are also said to be weighing how to respond and the appropriate measures to be taken against Russia.
Unfortunately, as we mentioned above, this is not the first time that Russia has been accused of using nerve agents, poison against the opposition in recent times. In 2018, this same poison was used against a former Russian military intelligence officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, UK. Skripal, a double agent drew the ire of the Kremlin when he began spying for Britain and also passed the identities of dozens of his country’s spies to UK MI6. Then-British Prime Minister Theresa May was reported to have said that Russia was most likely behind the poisoning. And an intelligence analyst Glenmore Trenear-Harvey, who previously worked for MI6, also said he believed the case has the characteristics of Putin’s involvement. Listen to him: “For this to be in a mall, for this to be in public, and for the same guy to be a former intelligence officer, potential attackers are immediately searched, ultimately, that would be as a result of the president Putin “. authorizing it, “In fact, the surveillance footage of the movement of Russian intelligence agents who flew to the UK in that period also pointed to the same conclusion. The whole world saw it. And I hope they still remember the slow but painful death of the Former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko, who was poisoned with radioactive polonium in 2006 also in London. Litvinenko, 43, was also an outspoken critic of Putin, who fled Russia to Britain six years before being poisoned. He died after drinking green tea mixed with the rare and very potent radioactive isotope at London’s Millennium Hotel.In a report published in 2016, a British judge found that Litvinenko was killed in a murder carried out by Russia’s security services, with the probable approval of President Vladimir Putin. As usual, Russia denied any responsibility for Litvinenko’s death. The other’s was black tea and for Litvinenko it is green tea. Russian tea! … All of these were investigated and reported to have Russian fingerprints. We don’t want to talk about others like the murder of another opposition politician, Boris Nemtsov, in Moscow, etc. Yes, today they are Russian citizens, but tomorrow they can be other nationals, these weapons could also be used in external conflicts or even transferred to rogue nations and terrorist groups.
Unfortunately, Russia’s aggression does not stop with the elimination of dissenting internal voices. Look at the annexation of Crimea, the invasion of Ukraine, the claim of the Arctic and natural resources, its constant and provocative intrusion into the air and sea space of other countries. The American air force is always fighting fighter jets to intercept and dodge Russian surveillance planes off the coast of Alaska. As I write, the dust has yet to settle on the recent clash between American and Russian military convoys in Syria. Or should we talk about Russia’s annoying meddling in the 2016 US presidential election? The problem has simply refused to go away in America. And unfortunately, again, this same Russia, with Iran and China are being accused of launching other cyber attacks in the 2020 US presidential campaign just two months before the elections. Today, in violation of the UN embargo, there are some 5,000 Russian mercenaries in Libya and he is also accused of supplying arms to one of the warring factions. Russians are notorious for violating treaties, resolutions, and agreements. The international community, especially the West, is always suspicious of Russia. There is that mutual mistrust, perpetual struggle and competition, constant espionage and permanent sabotage of interests between them.
Now, there is a fear that Russia will soon (if not already) start exporting these very lethal and similar substances to others, as it is seen as a desperate country ready to do everything, anything to make money and remain relevant. . Will the United Nations, the European Union, NATO and the world continue to watch as this happens? Everyone has a role to play in stopping this threat. Or will they retreat again as soon as the Russians flaunt their nuclear strength? Remember that Putin did that while the EU was talking about sanctions during the Litvinenko incident. He told them to remember that Russia was a nuclear state and that everyone rushed home immediately. What happened to all the treaties against the development of such biological, chemical and nuclear weapons? Are they inapplicable? Unfortunately, there is already a proliferation of chemical and nuclear weapons. We saw chemical weapons used by the Syrian government against its people. And I was recently surprised to hear that it was used in the first Gulf War as well. A soldier friend of mine and a victim who is still struggling with the effects to this day let me know. He said that today he is the only surviving victim in his unit. Currently, Russian mercenaries in Libya are also accused of using chemical weapons, a nerve agent, against GNA forces in the Salah Al-Din area of southern Tripoli. These weapons are everywhere.
We believe that Russia’s internal and external aggressive actions come from a people trying to survive, compete and regain lost glory. But they are doing it the wrong way. I think that what they basically need now to take their rightful place is urgent economic and political reform. You have to get these two right if you really want to make a comeback. Currently it seems that he is agitated on all fronts and this is affecting his behavior and relationship with others. You need to look inward to solve your problems and also learn to get on with the rest of the world in a positive competitive way. You must first free up the political space. Russians must be allowed to express themselves politically. You cannot claim to be a democracy when you muzzle and eliminate all forms of opposition. Democracy thrives on freedom and the rule of law. There must be freedom of speech, freedom of association and freedom of movement, and when you feel that someone has done something wrong, go to court to judge. Do not suspect, torture and eliminate as is the current situation. No. Second, the country must decisively confront corruption. Russia’s problem is corruption. Corruption has become a way of life for government officials and the corrupt political class in Russia. Bribery, organized crime, the mafia and the influence of the oligarchy must be controlled immediately. For now, it appears that corruption is legal and that there is an alliance between the government and criminals. And the most terrifying thing is that the mafiyas are moving, extending their activities to other countries. And I fear that with their powerful influence and access they can easily steal and transfer or sell these nuclear and biological weapons.
This is a country well endowed with natural and human resources, but it has been overtaken by corruption and mismanagement. Aging infrastructures: from energy to transport, from industry to the army. There is waste, mismanagement and decay everywhere. It has some of the largest oil and gas reserves in the world. But over-reliance on this has also become a problem with the constant fluctuations in the energy market. We advise that you should also use some of these resources that you are currently investing in the arms race to build businesses that create jobs for citizens. Unemployment in the country is terrible. And it has left its well-educated population stranded or forced to commit crimes and other nefarious activities. This is what must be done urgently and not silence and eliminate critics and opposition. The country must also avoid actions that attract sanctions and alienate them from other countries and investors. Like now, the Germans are already talking about abandoning a nearly completed multi-million dollar joint project due to the current poisoning incident. No country thrives like this. All of these are avoidable with the correct behavior.
Interestingly, the Russians are currently announcing their COVID 19 vaccine: Sputnik V. Their ambassador to Nigeria, Alexey Shebarshin, recently handed over the samples to Nigerian Health Minister Osagie Ehanire in Abuja during the former’s visit to the ministry. Other countries have also received the same. But I see more of a country that is desperate for resources and name. Otherwise, why the rush to advertise and market such a sensitive product when it has not fully gone through all the testing stages? The world and experts were recently shocked when President Putin hastily announced that Russia had produced the world’s first vaccine for the devastating virus without the proper and complete procedure to create it. At the time of the announcement, we learned that the Russian vaccine had not gone through the last stage of the trial – the third stage. And please, what is the position now? Has it happened? An incorrect or poorly produced vaccine is sure to wreak more havoc than the virus itself. But Putin and his Russia can make the world believe and relate better to them if they always follow the rules. You can’t deliver the vaccine (life) and poison (death) at the same time and still expect people to trust you.
Gabriel is the author of the books / audiobooks: Never Again! Move on, Midnight Prayer Power https://www.amazon.com/Power-of-Midnight-Prayer/dp/B0887ZB34G/ref=tmm_aud_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1593877396&sr=8-2
