A shipment of icons with explosives that would have passed through several countries and was destined for Moscow, would have been intercepted by the Russian authorities.
According to the media from this country, the cargo was picked up from Romania itself. All this “build-up” and the fact that Russia is vowing revenge suggests a pretext for Russia to perhaps even launch military operations.
However, Russia would not see a way to attack Romania because it would actually attack NATO.
What Russia is after in the explosive icons scandal. “They want to accuse Romania of conspiracy”
Newsweek Romania asked political scientist Cristian Pîrvulescu for his opinion on this situation. The expert explained that it could be a strategy of Russia to accuse our country of a so-called conspiracy against it.
According to the expert, there would be three hypotheses in this scandal.
Here they are, in order of credibility:
“The first hypothesis is that it is a Russian counterfeit, given that they are trying to accuse the Ukrainians of the terrorist attack in the theater in Moscow. And then he tries to bring as many elements as possible to make this accusation as acceptable as possible.
The second hypothesis – it is about a genuine catch that came from Ukraine.
The third hypothesis could be the involvement of some groups from Romania. Which, however, I think is less true, because Romania is very cautious. I start with the last one. Mistakes can be made. But it is also a glaring error that they could be detected. It was as simple as possible, because there is a morbid suspicion of the Russians regarding Romania”, explained Cristian Pîrvulescu.
Cristian Pîrvulescu- political scientist
Read also: VIDEO A drone factory in Russia, located more than 1,200 km from the front, destroyed by Ukrainian drones
The expert recalled that Romania has become the target of Russian attacks, at least from the moment it was announced that the Kogălniceanu base is becoming one of the most important NATO air bases in the area.
” Anyway, the anti-Romanian obsession has been working since 2008, but now it has reached its peak. And in this context I am tempted to believe that the first of the options, probably the most likely, and that it is an invention from one end to the other. That is, neither the Ukrainians nor the Romanians are involved in this so-called trade in explosive icons.
They want to accuse Romania not the negligence of the Romanian authorities. They want to accuse Romania of participating in this “business” alongside Ukraine.
They want to involve as many NATO countries as possible in the so-called conspiracy against Russia and they have to make it believable. And then elements like this are part of credibility games of accusations against Ukraine and NATO countries.
Do not forget that for the Russians Ukraine is an upcoming NATO war against Russia, through which NATO, the United States and Romania are obviously trying to put Russia in a difficult situation or even destroy it.
So that’s the reason why they need that kind of thing, because they’re there to give credibility to the core information, which is that Russia is under attack and, subsidiarily, that Ukraine and NATO are behind the terrorist attack in Moscow.” , said Cristian Pîrvulescu.
How real is the danger of a military attack from Russia?
Regarding a military consequence on the part of Russia in this scandal, Cristian Pîrvulescu said that it cannot take place in the current context, but “athe stake over Romania exists. It is related to the hybrid war, it takes place permanently, it starts from the faults that the Russians registered in the Romanian society and we see them, that is, it is about conspiracy theories and so on”.
If they attacked militarily, it would be an attack on a NATO country. Beyond the fact that Romania would have something to fight back with, because we have weapons, troops, it would be a trigger automatic application of Article 5. Because Antony Blinken said in an interview that appeared yesterday in the French press on a television news station, that from the point of view of the Biden administration, Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty automatically applies, that is, there is no negotiation.
It applies automatically when a country is deemed to have been attacked. If Trump comes to power, it will be more complicated. But at the moment it is like that and Russia does not need complications. Russia is in no position to afford to draw NATO into a confrontation, because the caliber difference is 1:33. That is, NATO means 33 times more military force than Russia,” said the political scientist.
But there is still a danger.
“There is only one exception. It is about the nuclear zone where Russia has superiority. And the escalation we are witnessing is about growth the degree of nuclear threat. I am one of those who believe that the attacks in Moscow were intended to create conditions to justify a practical nuclear attack on Ukraine.
But it is the Chinese who are preventing the Russians from using the atomic bomb. They don’t need an escalation and still have enough authority to prevent the Russians from doing so. But I am not convinced that Putin is directly involved in what I believe was a terrorist attack controlled or directed by Russian security forces.
I think that some of those around Putin are the ones who want to put her in the situation of using the nuclear bomb. I think there are, as in all military staffs, some who definitely want to use all the resources”, explained Cristian Pîrvulescu.
The explosive icons scandal
According to Russian media, nu no fewer than 27 ready-to-use improvised explosive devices disguised as icons, 70 kg of factory-made high-powered plastic explosives, 91 electric detonators and components for an RPG-7 rocket launcher were seized from a shipment of cargo originating in Ukraine, which passed through Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovakia, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia on its way to Russia.
Without disclosing their identities or specific roles, the FSB promised that all perpetrators and accomplices of this crime, including foreign nationals, would be declared wanted and would be vigorously prosecuted in accordance with Russian law.
Meanwhile, the driver of the inspected vehicle stated that the final delivery address in Moscow was on the transport bill of lading.
“When I arrived in <...> Romania for loading, at the warehouse I looked at the load. It consisted of liturgical utensils and icons
Then I headed to Russia, to Moscow, where the cargo was to be unloaded,” he said in a video released by the FSB. Read more HERE.
Tags: Russia accuse Romania conspiracy invented scandal icons explosives
-
