Hacker News Reader

Comment by apo | Hacker News Reader

British intelligence have labeled the poison as “military grade” and “of a type developed in Russia.”

I've seen no evidence whatsoever that the alleged attack was carried out by Russia.

Novichok agents were developed in the 1970s, have been the topic of many publications, and the simple and widely-known chemical structures of any number of them could be made by chemists from any country or group willing to take the risk to make them.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novichok_agent

If Britain is intent on dragging NATO into this, as it seems like it might be, there had better be far more compelling evidence of Russia's involvement than the weak drivel published to date.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/mar/13/nerve-agent-...

Remember yellowcake?

View on HN

No details have been released, but usually the first step of investigating a murder is to find out who would want this person dead.

Motive can provide a strong lead.

who would want this person dead.

Among that group would be those trying to foment conflict between NATO and Russia. And it's a pretty big group.

Russia has motive, means, and opportunity. It's not an insane conclusion to draw, and it's entirely possible the decision to blame them is based on non-public information like travel records, surveillance data, etc.

I don't see GP whitewashing anyone. More transparency (regarding the currently non-public information in particular) would be certainly welcome, before doing something that involves more than those two countries.

Russia has motive, means, and opportunity.

So do many other groups.

... it's entirely possible the decision to blame them is based on non-public information like travel records, surveillance data, etc.

Based on the information released to date, it's also possible that the decision is a naked attempt to manipulate the public.

I'd like to think that people would have become more skeptical of their government's use of "intelligence." Sadly, that doesn't seem to be the case.

People are willing to believe this because it falls exactly within the patterns of behavior that Russia has exhibited over the past few years. Considering the events that have been transpiring in other countries and their various brazen actions in the past this assassination attempt seems highly likely caused by Russia.

> So do many other groups.

Most of them aren't doing this, though.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/09/russian-state-...

> Russian state television has warned “traitors” and Kremlin critics that they should not settle in England because of an increased risk of dying in mysterious circumstances.

1. Russia doesn't have a motive. Skripal was convicted as a foreign spy and served a prison time in Russia. Then he was pardoned and exchanged for Russian agents. Russian state doesn't have anything to do with him. 2. If Russia has means to do it in London, we should ask what the British are doing? Why Russians do as they please in London? Looks like British special services suck. BTW, Novichok is not some secret, it was thouroughly studied by US military while dismantling Soviet checmical weapons facility in Uzbekistan.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com