Novichok saga, civilian deaths, and Naseby revelations

Britain and its Western allies have accused Russia of ordering the poisoning of former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter with a deadly nerve agent known as Novichok. 

• Britain has to date, failed to provide conclusive evidence of Russian culpability
   
• The HC has taken the moral high ground over the Skripals incident and the recently deceased woman on British soil
   
• Would the contents prove PoE Report to be ‘disinformation’?
   
• Novichok was initially manufactured by Russia

British High Commissioner James Dauris (HC), in his rebuttal dated July 10, 2018 of the Daily Mirror Editorial of July 09, 2018 has claimed, “readers expect better of your newspaper than to publish as its own views Russian State disinformation about the use of deadly nerve agents on the streets of United Kingdom.”   

He was referring to Britain’s accusation of Russia attempting to assassinate ex-Soviet era double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter now settled in the UK, in March 2018 and the death of another woman, supposedly a drug user resulting from the exposure to the Russian nerve agent ‘Novichok.’  

Britain has to date, failed to provide conclusive evidence of Russian culpability.   

The DM Editorial raised two very valid points, i.e., Novichok was initially manufactured by Russia, but since available in NATO countries does not make Russia guilty of the crimes and the logic behind Russia embarking on such projects three months before the FIFA World Cup tournament in Russia and during the event. The HC has taken the moral high ground over the Skripals incident and the recently deceased woman on British soil.   

Nevertheless, does not the whole Novichok saga fade into insignificance in comparison to the deaths in Iraq since the unilateral invasion by the US and Britain coalition in March 2003 without UN sanction?   

The American news and opinion website Huffington Post, in December 2017, reported of research carried out by university researchers in the United States, Canada and Baghdad inco-operation with the Iraqi Ministry of Health which estimated deaths over 500,000 covering not only violent deaths, but other avoidable deaths linked to the invasion, insurgencies and subsequent social breakdown.  

That toll is far higher than the nearly 115,000 violent civilian deaths reported by the British based group Iraq Body Count, which bases its tally on media reports, hospital and morguerecords, and official and non-governmental accounts.  

British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Government produced a dossier to justify Britain’s role in the invasion. It claimed Saddam Hussain’s regime had the capability of launching Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs) within 45 minutes. 15 years on and half a million Iraqi deaths, WMDs used to justify the invasion are yet to be found.  

Why has the Skripal incident accusing Russia ended in a vote in the OPCW, but the invasion of Iraq without UN sanction not been investigated and perpetrators, both nations and its leaders brought to justice? Why are half a million dead Iraqis being ‘trivialized’? The HC dismisses contents of the DM editorial as “Russian State Disinformation.”  

Britain, together with the USA were the chief architects of UNHRC Resolution 30/1 against Sri Lanka. Key elements in the Resolution were civilian deaths of 40,000 during the final stages of the Vanni campaign and war crimes committed by SLA forces based on a report by the Panel of Experts (PoE) prepared for the UN Secretary-General.   

British peer Lord Naseby, in late 2017, addressing the House of Lords disputed the PoE civilian death count and the accusation of SLA forces deliberately firing on civilians based in 39 pages of highly redacted dispatches from wartime British Defense Attaché in Colombo, Lt. Col. Anton Gash. Naseby received the dispatches through the assistance of the Information Commissioner after three years of resistance from British Foreign & Commonwealth Office.  

What were Britain’s reasons for not making wartime dispatches from its representatives in Colombo available to PoE members for their deliberations?  

Would the contents prove PoE Report to be ‘disinformation’?  

What is preventing Britain from publishing the 39 pages in an unredacted state?   

Damaging relations by publishing the confidential dispatches holds no water unless the documents contain proof of Britain acting against the interests of Sri Lanka.  

It is hoped, HC Dauris will provide clarity on issues raised for the benefit of DM readers.