On Wednesday, government spokesman Steffen Seibert announced that Charité doctors had provided unequivocal evidence of the poisoning of Russian oppositionist Alexej Navalny with a nerve agent from the Novitschok group. Sputnik talked to Willy Wimmer about it.

Mr. Wimmer, as the German government announced today, with reference to the toxicological findings of the Charité, the Russian oppositionist Alexej Navalny is said to have been poisoned “undoubtedly” with a chemical warfare agent from the Novitschok group. What do you do with this message?
This is a further step in the escalation policy towards the Russian Federation. I believe that you have to differentiate between several things. On the one hand, it is to be welcomed that everything has been done and everything is being done to save Mr Navalny's life and to eliminate the dire consequences of any action against him. There is no doubt about that. Only: In this context there are of course questions to the federal government why it did not turn to neutral bodies in connection with findings from the really respected Charité hospital. In the heated situation that we have had for years between NATO and the Russian Federation for NATO reasons, it would have been appropriate to include, for example, the Swiss institute in Spiez, which enjoys an unequivocal reputation worldwide, and not in the Disputes between NATO and the Russian Federation can be included in the way that unfortunately has to be said for the otherwise highly valued Bundeswehr. Against this background, that's not enough for me, it could have been different. So, the Federal Government itself is involved in the doubts that surround this entire process.
This chemical is said to have been used in the poison attack on the former spy Sergej Skripal and his daughter. As we know, that did not lead to their death. It was and still is assumed that the attack was carried out on the orders of the Russian government. The German government is now calling for the Russian leadership to take a position on the poisoning of Navalny. Looked at quite logically: why should the Russian government use a poison that did not work the last time, in a public, video-monitored place such as an airport?

These are things that should be processed criminologically. You have to ask yourself which bodies could do this appropriately in view of the dimension that has now been achieved internationally. If you want to find out what really happened, you will probably find institutes on this globe that can clarify this because it is part of their business. The incident in Great Britain at that time has already raised the question of whether it was the British account that we should be dealing with, or whether it was not in view of the British government's facilities in Porton Down, in the immediate vicinity of where the Skripals attacked were exposed to this fact should be included. These are all things that contribute to a great deal of uncertainty among the public because they speak in favor of the fact that forces are at work here who are trying to bring about a war situation in Europe through procedures of this kind against certain people. We must not see the current report from the Federal Government in isolation from the events in Minsk and Belarus. These are all things where, after the experiences that we had again and again before the American elections, in connection with the Yugoslav war, we saw that every day we could see that every opportunity was used to pull governments into war. In the United States we are faced with a situation in which the American President Donald Trump is apparently only responsible for the state of the rose garden of the White House, and outside of this rose garden the Democratic-Republican War Alliance is also responsible for the course of things in us Definitely Europe. The American president must ask himself whether he has any influence on the politics of his own country. In such a situation, as we unfortunately have to find out for the West with massive participation by the German government, we can easily ponder whether we should be included in a dispute with the Russian Federation before the American presidential elections. That is the reality we are faced with in Europe, and unfortunately, we have to face this reality in such a way that we can no longer find ways out. Either we behave like a sovereign state or let us be demonstrated according to the taste of NATO.
The German government has announced that it will consult with partners in the EU and at NATO on an “appropriate joint reaction” to this “dismaying event”. What do you think what is meant by that and what will happen? Renewed sanctions? Expulsion of Russian diplomats?

I don't even want to think about possible escalation levels in this context. Rather, it is a declaration that is tailored to London's interests. In connection with the Skripal story, the British saw that the thoughtfulness in continental Europe was great enough not to allow a further policy of confrontation with the Russian Federation to arise. To this day this is the great annoyance among those who habitually fabricate reasons for war. First of all, London should be mentioned. If the federal government makes such a declaration now, it will not be dropped like a hot potato in Brussels at NATO, but rather greeted with gratitude so that the Germans can finally be put on the curb. This no longer has anything to do with normal international relations or a policy geared towards peaceful cooperation. Reasons for war are sought. And yet we see the military incidents, which are increasing, reminds us of the worst times of the Cold War. Such a declaration can only be classified in this context.

So could it be a false flag from a third party trying to provoke this very reaction?
You see that right. We must not ignore the fact that everything is being done, including the predatory blackmailing of mayors on the island of Rügen, regarding Nord Stream 2. That is an approach that we are dealing with here in a political context that is unique in the world. Everything is being tried to push relations between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Russian Federation under the ice. God knows what comes to mind. The bad thing about this situation is that we are dealing with a friendly state in the east of our continent, where all the thumbscrews are being tightened so that internal conditions change so that this state can be put on a western leash. I described that in our book with Alexander Sosnowski - it's a continuous policy. And you can't pretend in the West that it is a singular incident that we are dealing with here. This is an overall chain that began in Yugoslavia with Racak and the staging of the deaths there, and in this case does not even end with the Russian Federation. The next case is sure to come. This is a production that is supposed to drive us into a conflict so that the federal government cannot hide behind humanity.