• hex_m_hell@slrpnk.net
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    1 year ago

    Wow, imagine how bad this would be if the Dutch had the ability to think less of the English.

    Edit: I imagine the plan involved British agents smelling like weed and standing in the bike lane yelling “woooo!” so as to go unnoticed.

    • circuscritic@lemmy.ca
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      1 year ago

      I assume you mean Article 5, and no, yes, maybe, but probably no.

      Article 5’s requirement is that the members convene to discuss a response to an attack, not an obligation to attack.

      Furthermore, this sounds more like an even dumber dumb Watergate, but with arguably, a moral justification i.e. covert burglary, maybe even armed robbery, for vaccines contracted to the UK.

      • tryptaminev 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇪🇺@feddit.de
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        1 year ago

        It is not armed robbery when the military is sent to another country. war is ultimately always about ressources, so you could argue every war to just be an armed robbery gone wrong.

        If someone sends their military to another coubtry without this countries explicit consent it is an act of war.

        • circuscritic@lemmy.ca
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          1 year ago

          You can semantically argue anything you want, but ultimately I can’t imagine any scenario where this would have been an actual war, or even resembling one.

          If the goal was to seize assets contained within a one, or just several buildings, the most likely way this would have played out would have been covert foreign intelligence teams, not an SAS commando raid with a bodycount.

          Would it have been incredibly dumb, and probably end up with the intelligence officers/assets arrested? Sure.

          Would it have been anything like a HVT snatch and grab in Afghanistan? No. Just no.

          Like I said, an even dumber, dumb Watergate.

        • AEsheron@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Article 5 has been invoked once, the US invoked it during 9/11. They asked for some extra air reconnaissance around the middle east, and basically to have allies be ready for joint action that never materialized. Article 5 is not an immediate declaration of war or anything.

          • vzq@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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            1 year ago

            I always thought ISAF was the NATO 5 action.

            I must admit I didn’t really pay attention to the legalities back then though.

    • CJOtheReal@ani.social
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      1 year ago

      Thats the same question as with Greece and Turkey.

      But in the end the entire EU would stand against them for shure. And USA would either not interfere or be on EUs side.

  • misk@sopuli.xyz
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    1 year ago

    What in the actual fucking fuck lol. I mean, times seemed dire but Jesus fucking Christ on rollerskates.

  • spiderkle@lemmy.ca
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    1 year ago

    “gentlemen, can you look uhm… for me… in a theoretical capacity… if we could just politely raid the Netherlands for vaccines…perhaps even announce to them, that we’d feel it’s best not to raid them even though the option… was discussed.”

    • El Barto@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Not to take away from the sentiment but…

      I’d include Putin, Xi, and Kim in that list.

      • taladar@feddit.de
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        1 year ago

        Even in the UK there are a couple of candidates. Nigel Farage, Suella Braverman, at least half of the DUP,…

      • RickyRigatoni@lemmy.ml
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        1 year ago

        Kim may be a horrible person but she isn’t a politician yet so I don’t think she qualifies.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldB
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    1 year ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:


    Boris Johnson’s appearance before the Covid-19 inquiry is not until Wednesday but it is already making headlines in the Netherlands amid a mixture of amusement and alarm at claims he asked for British spies to plan a “raid” on a Dutch vaccine plant.

    The operation – according to sources who briefed Johnson’s employer, the Daily Mail – would have taken place against the backdrop of a tit-for-tat row in March 2021 between the then prime minister and the EU, which was moving towards restricting exports of vaccines across the Channel.

    An “enraged” Johnson asked security services to draw up “military options” to obtain “impounded” doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from a plant in Leiden after Britain had negotiated a deal with the company.

    But while Britain’s security services were spared their biggest debacle on Dutch soil since Operation Market Garden, the claim has been widely reported on front pages in the Netherlands.

    Elsewhere, Russian state media generated a po-faced report on the claims, interspersing clips of Johnson with footage of British special forces and overlaying them with a sinister backing track.

    Johnson is expected to admit some fault when he is cross examined at the inquiry but will also seek to talk up the things that he believed he got right, ranging from the vaccines rollout to eventually opening up the economy.


    The original article contains 518 words, the summary contains 221 words. Saved 57%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

    • Gamoc@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      He intentionally messes up his hair to appear more likeable, because he’s a manipulative piece of shit who is incapable of not lying, even with his appearance.

    • Loaf@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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      1 year ago

      Sounds like a great idea, I’m sure that’ll be a top quality learning experience for the poor who are already facing a cost of living crisis, that’ll really teach them…