On April 13, this year the Times of Malta published a full-page article by Richard Galustian, “a political and security adviser based in MENA countries for nearly 40 years”.

Headed ‘The Skripal event’, the article started thus: “So many things unfolded in recent days that ridiculed almost every vitriolic claim Theresa May’s government directed against Russia, and [Vladimir] Putin personally, over the Skripal case…” Later, the correspondent referred to “…the last announcement from Porton Down that proves beyond doubt that the Prime Minister and [former] Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson blatantly lied”.

Galustian appears to have political foreknowledge denied to the rest of us. He writes: “The British government has been caught in a huge number of lies, demonising and provoking irresponsibly a nuclear power, but also their unprincipled stance to use this incident for domestic party political politics… The Conservative party has tremendously underestimated the degree of sophistication of the British electorate.

“This is the final straw for the British people.  The Conservative government’s rush to judge-ment within hours of the Skripal event will be a major reason why they will lose the next general election.”

Who was doing the rushing to judgement, one may ask. There is much more along the same lines.

He ends: “How much more ridiculous can this affair get and how many more lies, revelations and disinformation can we expect in the weeks to come?” Can the correspondent be invitedto provide us with an updateto what he wrote nearly six months ago?