British Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson delivered a wordy speech at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) on Monday, speaking about his vision of the country's defense policy in the near future.

            The United Kingdom cannot turn into a "paper tiger" and should be ready, if necessary, to defend against Russia's hostile acts in relation to NATO member states. Paradoxically, the allegation was voiced against the backdrop of Russia's repeated, consistent and resolute rejection of statements by Western politicians that Russia was allegedly making actions aimed at destabilizing the international situation, including actions directed against NATO countries.

            By the way, Williamson didn't specify what provocations Moscow was allegedly making with regard to London and its NATO allies. At the same time, the British defense secretary called on the alliance to improve preparedness in the light of the INF Treaty situation. Naturally, Williamson accuses Russia, not the United States, of violating the treaty.

            The British defense secretary insisted in his speech that military intervention is needed in some cases when it comes to confronting states that neglect international law. And he meant primarily Russia and China. "To talk…but fail to act…risks our nation being seen as nothing more than a paper tiger," the secretary said. It's really topical for a country whose symbol is a lion. The British secretary said that in order to demonstrate its force London intends to dispatch state-of-the-art HMS Queen Elizabeth carrying F-35 fifth-generation multi-role fighters to the Pacific Ocean.

            It is not the first time that Gavin Williamson attacked Russia with such unsubstantiated anti-Russian allegations. Let's recall that last March, shortly after the Salisbury incident involving the poisoning of Sergei Skripal, an ex-colonel of the Main Intelligence Directorate, and his daughter, the defense secretary abusively accused Russia of using chemical weapons in the United Kingdom. "It is absolutely atrocious and outrageous what Russia did in Salisbury. We have responded to that. Frankly, Russia should go away and should shut up," he said last year.

            Right after this statement, spokesman of the Russian Defense Ministry Major General Igor Konashenkov said, "The rhetoric of an insolent marketer shown by British Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson vividly characterizes his extreme intellectual impotence. This is just a proof of not only the nullity of all London's accusations against Russia that we have been hearing for the past several years, but also the complete nullity of the accusers." It is hard to add something else to this...

            It is likely that by insulting Russia, Williamson tries to "secure" additional funds for the Ministry of Defense under the pretext of an alleged Russian threat. This tactics by the way is not new, and many military leaders in NATO countries use it to get advantages seeking to increase their military budgets. But they do it more gently than British "gentleman" Gavin Williamson, who at the age of 42 is famous for his multiple insolvent statements, primarily, about Russia, of course.

            Doesn't the British secretary understand that the British "paper tiger," even though London possesses nuclear weapons, cannot frighten Moscow? Russia isn't what it was in 1990-s. It has all types of modern weapons, and Russia's actions in Syria explicitly showed that it is the case. So, Williamson cannot frighten Russia by making such statements although he strives to.

            It is worth mentioning that not only Moscow but also his colleagues in the British government are offended by his harsh tone. In particular, The Daily Mail noted that the tone of Williamson's speech at RUSI "is likely to frustrate Whitehall officials." One of the reasons for such concern is that this speech in which he calls on Brexit advocates in the ruling Conservative Party, may again prove his far-reaching political ambitions.

            It is no secret that Gavin Williamson, just as former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson are considered to be the most likely successor of Prime Minister Theresa May. Given that she herself said that she would leave the post after Brexit and would not run in the next parliamentary elections in 2022, Williamson's rhetoric and his calls to his party "brothers-in-arms" in the RUSI speech are easy to explain. He is seeking power in the United Kingdom, and probably the end justifies the means, including yet another statement about imaginary Russia's threat.

            It is logical that Williamson's pathetic speech in RUSI was made now. The speech was delivered on the eve of another Brexit voting in the parliament and was called to distract Britons from the government's failures at the talks with the EU. Williamson thinks that Brexit will provide great opportunities to Britain, including in the military sphere. "Brexit has brought us to a moment. A great moment in our history. A moment when we must strengthen our global presence, enhance our lethality, and increase our mass," Williamson said. As to the imaginary Russian threat, this is just a lightning rod amidst Brexit-related problems.

            Another lighting rod in the Brexit affair is a series of fake news about the so-called "Skripal case" in British media. It suddenly turned out that there are five Russians who were involved in the Salisbury incident. And of course they all are officers of Russia's military intelligence. However, the British side has not produced any evidence of Russia's involvement in the Skripal poisoning, just speculations and allegations.

            So, the latest "news" about the Salisbury incident and Williamson's speech are the links of the same chain of a powerful anti-Russian campaign conducted by London in order to distract its people from the Brexit failure.