# US Inteligence Agencies blame Russia for stirring Qatari pot - Plausible? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 6, 2017, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316 "2017-06-06T22:15:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2017, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/1 "2017-06-06T22:15:34Z")
Qatar and the Gulf Cooperation Council are at odds; one of the key bones of contention is a series “Fake News” planted in Qatari News Media - Leading to a breakup in the Gulf Bromance. Now, US Officials are [pointing fingers at Russia](http://www.cnn.com/2017/06/06/politics/russian-hackers-planted-fake-news-qatar-crisis/index.html) - Is this plausible? Has Russia found a new means for throwing their weight around on the cheap? Or is it a new version of “Blame Canada?” ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2017, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/2 "2017-06-06T22:21:16Z")
CENTCOM is based in Qatar. ---
**Author:** ![race\_to\_the\_bottom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c4cdca/32.png) [@race\_to\_the\_bottom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/race_to_the_bottom)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/3 "2017-06-07T00:13:25Z")
This whole “blame Russia” thing is completely out of hand. As hard as it may be to be for US Americans to believe, Russia and Putin have excellent reputations and relations with states around the world. US propaganda is putting out the most absurd unsubstantiated allegations. Nobody outside the US/NATO propaganda bubble believes any of this. It only further tarnishes the reputation of the US. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/4 "2017-06-07T00:32:41Z")
Since the OP is seeking opinions, let’s move this to IMHO. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/5 "2017-06-07T01:05:04Z")
Trump has already explained that he is responsible: > [@](#): > > …a morning of presidential Twitter posts congratulating Saudi Arabia — and himself — for cracking down on Qatar for alleged terrorism financing. > > “During my recent trip to the Middle East, I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology,” Trump tweeted. “Leaders pointed to Qatar — look!” > > “So good to see the Saudi Arabia visit with the King and 50 countries already paying off,” he continued. “They said they would take a hard line on funding extremism, and all reference was pointing to Qatar.” [https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/turkey-and-kuwait-move-to-mediate-middle-east-rift-over-qatar/2017/06/06/3fc3b070-4a8a-11e7-a186-60c031eab644\_story.html](https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/turkey-and-kuwait-move-to-mediate-middle-east-rift-over-qatar/2017/06/06/3fc3b070-4a8a-11e7-a186-60c031eab644_story.html) Of course administration officials tried to explain his statements away–not taking sides… ---
**Author:** ![Evan\_Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b487fb/32.png) [@Evan\_Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evan_Drake)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/6 "2017-06-07T01:53:35Z")
All they needed was a firm talking to. ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/7 "2017-06-07T01:59:59Z")
Russia just wants to hold the World Cup in 2022 as well as 2018. ---
**Author:** ![igor\_frankensteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/839c29/32.png) [@igor\_frankensteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/igor_frankensteen)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/8 "2017-06-07T02:16:02Z")
Since each of the states which have condemned Qatar have also contributed money to terrorist groups, or at least have high-placed members of their upper classes and leadership who have done so personally, I tend to be skeptical about the purity of each one’s motives. still waiting to see what comes of it all. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/9 "2017-06-07T02:22:40Z")
> [@race\_to\_the\_bottom](#): > > This whole “blame Russia” thing is completely out of hand. As hard as it may be to be for US Americans to believe, Russia and Putin have excellent reputations and relations with states around the world. US propaganda is putting out the most absurd unsubstantiated allegations. Nobody outside the US/NATO propaganda bubble believes any of this. It only further tarnishes the reputation of the US. Leaders of the CIA, NSA and FBI have implicated Russia in messing with our elections. How is that propaganda? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/10 "2017-06-07T02:26:23Z")
> [@race\_to\_the\_bottom](#): > > This whole “blame Russia” thing is completely out of hand. As hard as it may be to be for US Americans to believe, Russia and Putin have excellent reputations and relations with states around the world. US propaganda is putting out the most absurd unsubstantiated allegations. Nobody outside the US/NATO propaganda bubble believes any of this. It only further tarnishes the reputation of the US. Let’s go to the quarry and throw stuff down there! This is some of the best comedic material currently on the SDMB! Do you do stand-up too, or do you just write jokes? ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/11 "2017-06-07T13:58:37Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Since the OP is seeking opinions, let’s move this to IMHO. > > Colibri > General Questions Moderator Right. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/12 "2017-06-07T14:01:49Z")
"The bandwagon against Qatar continues to roll - Al Jazeera has asked openly if this is a move to supplant the Qatari roayal family - is there a move to push a member of the Saud family onto the throne? Would this serve anyone’s interest in ‘the West?’ Is Russia trying to destabilze CENTCOM? Interfering with CENTCOM operations could only help Russian influence moves in the region by creating at least a partial vaccuum. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/13 "2017-06-07T14:06:45Z")
> [@race\_to\_the\_bottom](#): > > This whole “blame Russia” thing is completely out of hand. As hard as it may be to be for US Americans to believe, Russia and Putin have excellent reputations and relations with states around the world. US propaganda is putting out the most absurd unsubstantiated allegations. Nobody outside the US/NATO propaganda bubble believes any of this. It only further tarnishes the reputation of the US. My Indian relatives are as confident as I am that Putin is jailing dissidents on trumped-up (no pun intended) charges and interfering in the democratic processes of other countries. Are they in a US/NATO bubble? ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2017, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/us-inteligence-agencies-blame-russia-for-stirring-qatari-pot-plausible/788316/14 "2017-06-07T15:34:36Z")
So, the suggestion is that the diplomatic break was not in fact due to Qatar’s well-documented ties with Iran, its supposed billion-dollar ransom payment, or its support for the wrong extremist groups, but rather because of one article reporting friendly remarks toward Iran and Israel that the Qataris say is fake? Maybe the news agency was indeed hacked, but there are legitimate, substantive problems between Qatar and the other Gulf states, and the leak of this story sounds like the Qataris trying to create a distraction to divert blame.