Putin dismissed US warnings about a potential terror incident as 'blackmail' just 3 days before concert hall attack

MicroWave@lemmy.world to World News@lemmy.world – 536 points – Putin dismissed US warnings about a potential terror incident as 'blackmail' just 3 days before concert hall attack
businessinsider.com
  • Gunmen stormed a concert hall in Moscow on Friday, killing at least 60 people and injuring more than 100.
  • Earlier this month, the US embassy issued a security alert warning of a potential terror attack.
  • Just days ago, Vladimir Putin dismissed the idea as "blackmail" from the West.

…

Earlier this month, the US embassy in Russia issued a security alert warning about a potential terror attack in Moscow and urged people to avoid crowds, monitor local media for updates, and be aware of surroundings.

"The Embassy is monitoring reports that extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, to include concerts, and U.S. citizens should be advised to avoid large gatherings over the next 48 hours," the March 7 security alert said.

Putin addressed the warnings a couple weeks later, criticizing the warning three days ago as "provocative."

…

"All this resembles outright blackmail and the intention to intimidate and destabilize our society," Putin said, according to state media reporting on his remarks.

The US embassy issued another alert on Friday saying it was "aware" of the attack and urged Americans to avoid the area.

73

Hot damn. So I kind of understand why the Russians would dismiss this as a lie or a threat because yknow. War in Ukraine, Trump, etc, relations are bad to put it politely.

But can we talk about what kind of terrifying flex of power that is from US Intelligence? It's one thing to predict a terror attack on your own soil- sure your citizens quite rightfully won't like the privacy violations, but the national authorities are going to help you; so if your intelligence agency is worth the name it should stop most attacks.

But can you imagine having information access that's so damn good you can not only predict a terror attack in a nation that has an extremely vested interest in not letting you know what they're doing because they're running a war that you (and everyone else) don't like, but you feel completely confident TELLING THEM, which could risk your information sources if they're not properly hidden. This is like the Foreign Intelligence equivalent of being so far ahead of your opponent in a game that you start giving them sincere advice on how to play so that they don't get thrashed too badly.

It reminds me a bit of the US intelligence saying that Russia was going to invade Ukraine and attempt to make it all the way to Kiev while Russia was adamant that it would never happen.

The other thing to note is that all countries have an "obligation to report" which requires them to report evidence of terror attacks to any county that would be the victim, even if they are a hostile nation. As much as "US bad" is true, it's frankly refreshing to see us do the right thing so publicly, even if it was only as a way to make Putin look bad.

US intelligence called the day and the hour the invasion would start, as well as the route the first military group would take. I remember at the time people were speculating that Russia would call it off or change plans because their operation had been so thoroughly blown, while a lot of global media was just accusing the US of warmongering. Russia just plowed ahead with their invasion anyway.

It ended up being a good litmus test. The people who were being genuine admitted they were completely wrong, like Snowden. Others never said they were wrong in their doubts, and they're generally grifters.

Snowden just says whatever the Russian government tells him to say or he'll fall out of a window.

There's defense, and there's defenestration.

It wasn't just Russia who was saying that wasn't gonna happen, basically everyone outside the US thought it wouldn't happen cause it would be a really stupid thing to do. Then it turned out they did it and it was really stupid and I think a lot of people were surprised the US was telling the truth and it wasn't just fearmongering.

Countries have an obligation to report

Are you kidding? Almost all terror attacks are one way or another sponsored by counties and governments who are all too happy to see another country suffer.

Strategically, from the US perspective, it was an enormously effective flex. It doesn't matter what Putin says to his people, or the world, but now he knows that the US knew, and could have said nothing. Charles de Gaulle once said, "No nation has friends, only interests."

Pretty sure Kissinger said that; the us does not have allies or enemies, only interests.

We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow.
Lord Palmerston, House of Commons, 1 March 1848

People says Kissenger paraphrased this with "America has no permanent friends or enemies, only interests" - afaik there's no evidence of this but either way the quote's older than he is.

Seems often it's like this with simple quotes.

First thing I pulled up said it was de Gaulle. I rather suspect Kissinger got it from de Gaulle, who got it from Palmerston. My point is that I didn't make it up. And this thread demonstrates that it is a long standing sentiment.

Honestly its one of those sentiments thats probably been around for millenia. A similar pair of qoutes comes to mind.

"Speak sofly and carry a big stick" -Theodore Roosevelt

"Hope for peace prepare for war" -Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus

This is true, but sometimes strategic interests actually does line up with the morally correct thing to do.

I wish that was the rule and not the exception

It actually happens most of the time, but people peacefully coexisting with one another is boring and war is exciting. So we tend to only talk about the war. Lately it's gotten so people have been actively denying peace and cooperation even exist which is really bizarre.

Go outside touch grass yadda yadda, and consider traveling to any of the many many countries of the world that aren't in a war. You'll find that peace and cooperation is actually the norm, and the fucked up scenarios you see on the news are actually the exceptions.

America's relationship with Russia is complicated. But they're pretty motivated to see ISIS go down. Something like this is a big recruiting event.

was looking at a lemmygrad post on this attack earlier.

They're convinced that ISIS is a current CIA asset

Everything they don't like is caused by the CIA according to them. Apparently, the CIA has unlimited and omnipotent power... which is why it's weird that they're expecting a glorious revolution.

This could escalate the situation a lot of Russia gets hell bent in blaming Ukraine or the US.

Even from an extremely cold perspective, there's little strategical benefit for the US on this, and it's a wild card.

Or they helped plan it.

Then told Putin the exact plan, knowing 100% that he wouldn't act on the information? God damn, we're fucking amazing.

Or they knew because they were the ones attacking lol. Open your eyes.

Okay, what's your evidence? The public advance warning? Their long history of backing isis /s?

I'm not sure why you're getting downvoted, I have been saying for years the weather man is causing the storms and they call me crazy.

5 more...

There's a passage in the book 'The Godfather' that everyone should read and understand.

One of the most powerful Mafia families in New York rose to power because they were willing to kill people over garbage collection. All the businesses needed trash hauling, and nobody was crazy enough to risk their life to compete with murderers.

Putin wasn't a genius who gained power through subtle moves; he was a shark who ate up anyone in his way.

It’s just business, nothing personal.

At the end, …it’s all personal.

I swear nobody got that. People say that line and I’m like ‘Well, fuck you very much if you read the book’.

Nobody read that book

Hi, I'm Nobody.

That book is fucking awesome.

Except for that subplot about that lady's massive hooha

You know that whole thing is a Greek tragedy reference? Sonny's massive dick comes from.the same logic Michelangelos' David has a tiny one. There's more to it, but it amounts to "Sonny was an animal and died like one"

Yea but I'm not talking about Sonny's enormous bratwurst. I'm referring to the whole subplot of that chick later meeting a plastic surgeon and getting her kitty tightened.

It's all connected. I didn't feel like writing an essay, just pointing you in the explanations direction.

For being able to speak bullshit so fluently you think he'd be better at telling the difference, but the last couple of years have really proven otherwise.

Luckily, he could not care any less about the lives he destroys.

Russian or otherwise, they're nothing but lambs to the slaughter to an unbridled sociopath.

Being a sociopath helps being an effective leader. And he has been an effective leader. Just that the outcomes that he wanted were unattainable by the sociopathic means he's been using.

Highlights what a pathetic, weak little shit he truly is. Edit: it’s also telling how he assumes the warning was meant to destabilize russian society. What a scourge he has been on the world.

It also points out that his own intelligence agencies don't have the ability to gather information as well as the Americans, nor to properly assess information they get handed to them on a silver platter.

Or if they're like Israel, they do but the leadership rejects the warnings

Yeah there may be consequences for doing a lot of purges in a country's intelligence apparatus.

Putin is lucky that the attack happened after the election. I think he'd have only won about eighty-one percent of the popular vote.

Isis does in fact want to destabilize your county, what a dipshit.

Pretty sure that would only be blackmail if it was Putin's plan. Is he trying to take credit away from ISIS or was it a Freudian slip?

This is the best summary I could come up with:

Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed US warnings about a potential terror incident in Moscow just days before gunmen attacked a concert hall in the city on Friday.

At least 40 people are dead and more than 100 are injured after multiple armed individuals stormed the Crocus City Hall in Moscow, state-run news agency TASS reported, citing Russia's Federal Security Service, or FSB, which called the incident a "terrorist attack."

According to Russian state media, the unidentified gunmen were armed with assault rifles and opened fire in the lobby of the building before moving into the main concern hall, where a band was scheduled to perform.

Earlier this month, the US embassy in Russia issued a security alert warning about a potential terror attack in Moscow and urged people to avoid crowds, monitor local media for updates, and be aware of surroundings.

Though concerts were mentioned as a potential target in the US security alert, it is unclear at this time if Friday's attack is related to the threats that Washington was tracking.

"We strongly condemn the horrendous attack carried out at a concert hall in Moscow," Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement.

The original article contains 404 words, the summary contains 193 words. Saved 52%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!

Why is the USA not doing the same warning message for school shootings ?

Easier to infiltrate terrorist networks -- networks are, well, networks. Most school shootings are independent actors, even if radicalized online.

Now, if you're asking about why they haven't implemented decent gun control laws...

Lonely wolf are hard to catch compared to a pack of wolves.

I seriously doubt there was any conspiracy involved in this.

But I wouldn't be surprised if there was.

More than one person was involved in a plan to kill a bunch of people. That's pretty clearly a conspiracy. The only thing to debate is, who's conspiracy.

Very peculiar how people openly accept that the CIA knew, but can’t entertain the idea that they would be behind it. How else would they know?