4 ms·

I'd say Russia definitely has at least a subset of very amateurish spies. An example coming to mind is the Skripal poisoning in Salisbury, UK.

• obmelvin 6y ago
  How was that amateurish? Acquiring and handling such a substance would not be easy.
  • jfk13 6y ago
    They left a pretty clear trail, and they didn't actually succeed in killing the target. Sounds amateurish to me.
    • eloff 6y ago
      That sounds intentional. The only reason to use novichok as the weapon is precisely so everyone knows who did it. It's meant to be an example to others so they don't cross the Russian government.
      • fit2rule 6y ago
        Russians are not the only ones manufacturing the substance known as Novichok. The UK and US also manufacture it.
• aksss 6y ago
  Isn't Stalin rumored to have said, "There's a certain quality in quantity" in response to criticism that quality beats quantity? I think the quote is one of those unproven maybe-it-happened-but-we-have-no-solid-evidence things, but it seems to sum up the Russian approach to tanks and troops in WWII well enough, and from stories I've read, seems to be reflect their approach in the spy world as well. They are immensely practical.