MOSCOW, January 26. /TASS/. The chairman of the foreign policy committee in the upper house of Russian parliament, Konstantin Kosachov has dismissed the allegations by the UK State Secretary for Defense, Gavin Williamson, that Russia is getting ready to destroy the UK’s vital infrastructures.
He described the claims as ‘unscrupulous and dirty policy’.
Gavin Williamson claimed earlier this week that Russia was drafting plans to destroy the vital infrastructures on the British Isles, which would bring about chaos and thousands upon thousands of deaths. He made this position public in an interview with The Daily Telegraph.
Specifically, he accused Russia of closely watching the UK’s critical power plants and interconnectors that help transmit electric power across state borders. When the Telegraph asked him why Moscow would target these areas, Williamson said: "It is because they are saying, ‘these are the ways we can hurt Britain’."
"Quite naturally, a question any Russian politician - and not only politician asks himself in the first place is what for," Kosachev said. "Not only what Russia should attack the UK for, because this is a strictly rhetoric question. More importantly, why Gavin is spreading these purported and scaring lies."
He found several explanations for the fact.
"First, the West is espousing today an unwritten formula, which suggests that whatever you blame Russia for, it’s never too much," Kosachev said. "The series of ‘Russians did it’ pictures in the net has groundwork, the essence of which boils down to discerning the ‘Russian trail’ in absolutely any bad event or even natural calamity."
Secondly, political milieus in the West believe they can say just anything at all about Russia because no one will hold them accountable for their allegations.
"Otherwise a lot of European and American politicians would have gotten the sack already while others would have thought many a time whether it’s really worthwhile to make these unsubstantiated claims," Kosachev said.
"And given the situation of total impunity, anyone can claim remorselessly that Russia brought down the Kaczynski jet and MH17, that it committed acts of aggression and annexation, that is planning to attack Poland, the Baltic states and now the UK, and that it elected a president in the U.S. and meddled in all the elections in Europe," he said. "The authors of these groundless sensational claims will never face any consequences."
In addition to it, Kosachev believes Williamson chose the theme of cyberattacks on infrastructures quite purposefully because it is practically impossible to prove where these attacks come from.
"It’s very convenient to scapegoat Russia because it has already been charged with all sorts of things and no one will face any liability for fake accusations all the same," he said.
Kosachev believes that the falsehood of Williamson’s claims will become apparent at a certain point because people in Britain will not become victims of ferocious Russian attacks. "But bad fallout will still be there - in the form of a new spiral of confrontation in Europe. And once again, some quarters will be apportioning all blame for it to Russia."
"That’s an unscrupulous and dirty policy and I think it’s time for people in other countries to start bringing their leaders to account for it," he said.