Eye Spy - May 2018

EYE SPY INTELLIGENCE MAGAZINE 115 2018 35

SKRIPAL SANCTION

Continued from page 13

however, complained about the West

demanding a rules-based international order

while regularly breaking its own standards.

Since the annexation of Crimea in March

2014, Russia has received sanctions and

‘ridden out’ any punishments from the

international community. In addition, President

Putin recently announced a collection of new

nuclear weapons, including a cruise missile

that could “reach anywhere in the world” and

bypass all forms of defence. “These will make

the West hear us,” he said.

COLD WAR ARCHITECTURE

The Cold War 1.0 security architecture is

crumbling in Europe. While the United States

has shrunk its commitment to Europe’s

security, the European Union itself has failed

miserably to generate a common security

policy. And while NATO funding continues to

be a sore point amongst alliance members

(some contribute virtually nothing), Putin is

aggressively pushing into the power vacuum

in Europe and the Middle East, and the Skripal

incident is a square on the chessboard just as

Syria is.

Intelligence analysts say Cold War 2.0 is not

going to end any time soon and there is the

very real possibility of incidents escalating into

something much, much worse.

LIST OF MISCHIEF

STEPHEN MOSS, 2003. Moss, a British

lawyer, had an apparent heart attack and died

in 2003. US Intelligence officials allegedly

believe he may have been assassinated.

STEPHEN CURTIS,

2004. Curtis, a
      lawyer who repre-
      sented an imprisoned
      Russian oil tycoon,
      was killed in a
      helicopter crash in
      England in 2004.

Again, US Intelligence suspects that Russia

may have played a hand in his death.

IGOR PONOMAREV,

2006. Ponomarev died
      shortly before Litvinenko,
      just before he was due to
      meet with someone
      investigating Russian
      activities in Italy. US
      Intelligence may have
      evidence that the diplomat was assassinated.

ALEXANDER

LITVINENKO, 2006.

Litvinenko’s death made

international headlines

after the defector was

poisoned in 2006. It

contributed to hostile

relations between Russia

and the UK. Polonium, a

radioactive isotope, was

slipped into a cup of tea that he drank. Russia

has always denied any part in his death,

despite a public inquiry formally accusing two

Russians of carrying out the killing on behalf

of the Kremlin.

YURI GOLUBEV, 2007.

An oil tycoon and friend

of jailed political

dissident Mikhail

Khodorkovsky, Golubev

died in London. An

obituary at the time said

he “felt unwell,” returned

from a trip early, and subsequently “died

peacefully.” US Intelligence suspects foul play.

DANIEL MCGRORY, 2007. McGrory was a

foreign correspondent for The Times of

London and was found dead in his north

London flat. He had reported extensively on

Litvinenko’s death. While his family believe he

died of natural causes, British Intelligence

officials later asked their US counterparts to

investigate his death.

BADRI PATARKATSISHVILI, 2008. The best

friend and former business partner of Boris

Berezovsky,

Patarkatsishvili lived

close to his friend in

Surrey, southern England

until he died of a heart

attack after a family

dinner. Like in the case of

Daniel McGrory, UK

intelligence officials

asked their counterparts

in the US for information

about Patarkatsishvili’s death, and any

possible links to Russia.

• 23 Russian diplomats were expelled. A
  large number, if not all, were intelligence
  people.


• The creation of new powers to detain
  those suspected of Hostile State Activity
  at the UK border.


• Increase checks on private flights,
  customs and freight.


• A freeze of Russian State assets
  wherever the UK has evidence that they
  may be used to threaten the life or
  property of UK nationals or residents.


• A suspension of all planned high level
  bi-lateral contacts between the UK and
  Russia, including revoking the invitation
  to Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to visit
  to the UK.


• No attendance by Ministers or
  Members of the Royal Family - at the 2018
  World Cup in Russia.


• The creation of a new £48 million
  chemical defence centre based at Porton
  Down to face the “increasing” threat from
  Russia and North Korea.


• All UK Special Operations troops to
  receive anthrax vaccine.

GARETH WILLIAMS,

2010. The body of
      GCHQ officer
      Williams, who was on
      secondment to MI6,
      was found in a
      suitcase in his London
      flat in 2010. While
      New Scotland Yard
      said they think it was
      an accident, intelli-
      gence agencies and those close to the case
      believe he may well have been assassinated.

PAUL CASTLE, 2010. A property dealer with

flamboyant spending habits, Castle died by

suicide after stepping in front of a tube train.

Sources say he may have been threatened

THE BRITISH

RESPONSE IN FULL

ANATOMY OF THE