Do you think security services are working towards taking Putin out?

[Buggsilla]

Hearing about him cutting power to that nuclear power plant has set me off. This is SO dangerous. I've had it, the man's a terrorist. Do you think behind the scenes special forces are trying to get close to put a hit on him?

I hope so.

Think they’re hoping for an inside job.

No. He may be an evil, mass murdering psychopath but taking out a president is a declaration of war.

No, they can't do that as it would cross a line. Hopefully one of his cronies will do it instead. Someone worse may replace him though.

Yup, that would be a declaration of war. It wouldn't 'go down well' in diplomatic circles 😐

No. There is SO much diplomacy going on behind the scenes. Absolutely tons of it. Much of it extremely delicate.

No one is plotting to 'take him out'. This isn't a Bond film, or a series finale of Spooks.

If anyone did do this, they would kick off WWIII.

Assassinating another country's leader who we are not currently at war with ( whatever heinous acts he has done.) wouldn't be a good look especially as it was give Russians justification ( in their eyes) to use all weapons at the disposal including nuclear.

Power to Zaporizhzhia is back on now, by the way.

I think like Gadaffi and Hussein you would hope his own people will turn on him.

A dose of his own radioactive medicine would be nice. Preferably from his own side. Umbrella optional

How would you compare this then to Osama Bin Laden who was taken out by a Navy Seal?

What country was he president of then?

OBL was a terrorist not a President

Even if they did (which they won’t) what worries me is the person who will replace him will be even worse.

I think he'll be killed by one of his own. There's a reason he's bunkering down.

No.

The Security Service is a concerned with protecting the national interest against threats.

If anyone was going to do t, it would be SIS/Special Forces.

But UK doesn't go in for assassinations and we don't really have the expertise. Other nations are more prepared to countenance operations of that sort, and so probably are examining options.

But that doesn't mean they are likely to do anything - not just because getting to Putin at all would be extremely difficult, but also because no-one wants to create a void that would be filled by the Wagner Group and its puppets

Unlike AQ, an organisation which US hoped would collapse if leadership taken out, Russia is a country which will continue to exist and require government.

One thing I hope that the West has learned is not to attempt regime change without a plausible plan for a successor

Osama Bin Laden was not a head of state.

If we really wanted to bring the Russian war machine to a grinding halt, it wouldn’t be the SIS or Special Forces that we’d be sending in. It would be the Health & Safety Executive, Ofsted and National Highways.

That would bring the whole house of cards crashing down. Avanti West Coast could be used as follow up shock troops, to extinguish any last pockets of resistance.

No offense OP, but they’re probably not going to confide in the public. It’s kinda highly confidential info. I’m sure Jason Bourne has a plan.

• offence, not offense. Stupid American spellings!

Russians are the political assassination experts. They've had plenty of practice. At some point, their ruling class is going to have to choose whether it's still in love with the West, and its expensive toys, or choose post-nuclear pariah status for the whole of Russia. Hurry up please, spetsnaz.

No of course not, we don’t just go and kill presidents for making threats, what are you thinking ! It would start world war three. They are working on containing it. If they took putin out who came next would be worse and there would be a world war.

No, that really is declaring war on Russia, it would amp up all his supporters and government supporters and we'd be in a worse situation not a better one, a sudden power vacuum which will end in someone with very similar ideology to putin taking over and worried the same thing will happen to them.

No, it's up to Russia to sort itself out. It would be an act of war to do that.
And replace him with who, by the way?

I've sometimes wondered why there isn't a secret international team of assassins who can infiltrate and take out nutjob tyrants including those who declare themselves ruler for life.