by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
The Unites States claim that they are concerned that British police and security services are not capable of protecting its athletes. Therefore it wants US security services, such as FBI (and CIA) involved with its security teams.
The US has raised repeated concerns about security at the London Olympics and is preparing to send up to 1,000 of its agents, including 500 from the FBI, to provide protection for America's contestants and diplomats, according to the Guardian newspaper.
The Met Police Assistant Commissioner responsible for the 2012 Olympics claims that nothing of this sort is being proposed and that there will be but a few US liaison officers who will NOT be armed.
Maybe the officer needs to wake up and smell the roses. Our dear allies' security services in the UK are armed at all times and to state different is garbage.
Washington's need for reassurance is exasperating British officials and anti-terrorism officials, who have privately raised concerns about the meddling, as well as the size of the US "footprint" in the UK during the games next year.
“We are not equal partners in this," said one security official. "They are being very demanding.”
Is it not time that the UK government told the Americans that Britain is NOT a satellite state nor the 51st State of the USA. Britain is a sovereign nation and the security for the Olympic Games is down to our own security forces. The SAS and other special units will be involved and should be good enough.
Would the USA try to do the same if the Olympics would be in Paris, as it nearly would have been, or, say, in the Russian Federation. I am sure the Russian FSB especially would tell them where to get off. Time Britain did the same.
© 2011
