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Significance
The government is under pressure to attribute the attack to Russia but has so far insisted on gathering full evidence before doing so and setting out retaliatory steps. The attack seems to breach implicit rules of intelligence activity.
Impacts
The UK government will have to shape a response while navigating between hawkish and conciliatory voices in London and Washington.
The West will use back-channel discussions with Russia to discover whether this attack marks a change in intelligence 'rules'.
Western intelligence agencies will have to reassess their operations as they consider the attack's implications.
The case will force a review of policies for securing agents and defectors, and deter potential collaborators.
Keywords:
Russia,
RUCIS,
United Kingdom,
EU,
NATO,
United States,
RUSSIA/UK,
international relations,
politics,
espionage,
foreign policy,
sanctions,
security,
government,
assassination,
judicial
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2018
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