Brexit A Russian Plot

[Gromit]

// Arron Banks, the millionaire businessman who bankrolled Nigel Farage’s campaign to quit the EU, had multiple meetings with Russian embassy officials in the run-up to the Brexit referendum, documents suggest.

Banks had:
• Multiple meetings between the leaders of Leave.EU and high-ranking Russian officials, from November 2015 to 2017.

• Two meetings in the week Leave.EU launched its official campaign.

• An introduction to a Russian businessman, by the Russian ambassador, the day after Leave.EU launched its campaign, who reportedly offered Banks a multibillion dollar opportunity to buy Russian goldmines.

• A trip to Moscow in February 2016 to meet key partners and financiers behind a gold project, including a Russian bank.

• Continued extensive contact in the run-up to the US election when Banks, his business partner and Leave.EU spokesman Andy Wigmore, and Nigel Farage campaigned in the US to support Donald Trump’s candidacy. //

Banks is due to face a Parliamentary Select Committee next week, which could be interesting. This is the lead story in todays Sunday Times.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/revealed-brexit-backer-arron-bankss-golden-kremlin-connection-7nbwc7m58
(This is behind a paywall, so the above text is from the Observer).

[vetuste_ennemi]

The two theories are predicated on the assumptions that (1) Trump's presidency, and (2) Brexit would serve Russian interests.

Can anyone explain how?

[vetuste_ennemi]

The "theory" in each case being Russian collusion.

[Gromit]

(2) The EU influence in former Soviet countries bordering on Russia has irked the Russians since the collapse of communism there. There was an agreement with Gorbachov that the EU would not take advantage of the transition, but of course they did. So the Russians see the EU as its enemy, and would support anything that damages the EU, such as members leaving, or its collapse.

[Old_Geezer]

We should all thank him profusely sometime then.

[youngmafbog]

The Russians seem to have forgotten to contact my familly nd tell them how to vote, How remiss of them.

[Zacs-Master]

Ah. Explains a few things.

[gulliver1]

GAWD Is Comrade Farage , about to go Red !, PMSL, it would not surprise me at all.

[youngmafbog]

These damned Ruskies get everywhere, even helping out old Jezza !

[youngmafbog]

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/04/28/russian-twitter-bots-attempted-influence-election-supporting/

[Togo]

Haha the Moaners are getting desperate now. After the revelation that Soros was bankrolling them they scweem …….it was him sir. Notice how the same accusations were levelled at Trump when he stuffed it to the left wingers?(who used to love the USSR) Now of course their slavish devotion has moved to the EUSSR.

[gulliver1]

Suppose, poor NIGEL is looking for a new income if he gets his cards from the EU.
He doesn't care who pays him , Arron Banks or Putin.

[Gromit]

Togo
There is an FBI investigation into connections between the Trump campaign and the Russians. A great opportunity for Trump to disprove the claim. Instead he is doing everything to thwart the investigation.

He has even proclaimed that if found guilty, he can pardon himself and his sidekicks.

[benhilton]

Who voluntarily called the Brexit referendum when he didn't need to -

Putin ?

[benhilton]

Who put the X's on the ballot papers -

Putin ?

[Togo]

oooooo there's a bogeyman. Haha.

[jno]

but how could a fragmented and disunited Europe possibly benefit Russia?

[douglas9401]

Some people just like to break things, jno. Who benefits from smashing bus shelters or setting wheelie bins on fire?

[jim360]

Are you seriously asking those two questions, v-e?

I think jno hit the nail on the head with No.2 -- as to your first question, it's not too hard to see that Trump, direct collusion or no, is doing his level best to annoy his allies and get onside with Putin and Russia. Look at his pronouncement at the G7 summit, just concluded, that Russia -- despite their annexation of Crimea, despite Salisbury, despite their actions in Syria, and so on -- should be brought back into the fold post-haste. It probably stings even more that, at the same time, he's doing his level best to disunite the US and its traditional allies, sometimes for the pettiest of reasons.

It doesn't take a genius to see that Russia benefits when the EU is stuck with infighting, and when the US is turning its back on its traditional allies.

[ichkeria]

I doubt if there was any sort of ‘plot’ as such.
Banks is a very dodgy businessman tho no doubt.
Like Jim I’m astounded that anyone could seriously ask: ‘How would a Trump presidency help the Kremlin?’
Even the scuppering of Iran deal, to which Russia was also a signatory, must have had Putin secretly doing a jig of delight.

[gulliver1]

Anyone know what the amount of money was , that changed hands between these two Dodgy characters?,