Russian spy, daughter hit by mysterious substance in Britain
LONDON: Britain warned Russia on Tuesday of a robust response if the Kremlin was behind the mysterious illness that struck down a former double agent convicted of betraying dozens of Russian spies to British intelligence.
Foreign secretary Boris Johnson named Sergei Skripal, once a colonel in Russia’s GRU military intelligence service, and his daughter, Yulia, as the two people found unconscious on Sunday on a bench outside a shopping centre in southern England.
Skripal, 66, and his 33-year-old daughter were exposed to an unknown substance in Salisbury city. Both are still critically ill .
“If it’s as bad as it looks, it is another crime in the litany of crimes that we can lay at Russia’s door,” Johnson said. “It is clear that Russia...is now in many respects a malign and disruptive force, and the UK is in the lead across the world in trying to counteract that activity.”
If Moscow was shown to be behind Skripal’s illness, Johnson told parliament, it would be difficult to see how UK representation could go to the World Cup in Russia. A government source said that meant attendance of ministers or dignitaries.
Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova described Johnson’s comments as “wild.” .
Calling it a “tragic situation,” the Kremlin said it was ready to cooperate if Britain asked it for help investigating the incident with Skripal.
A previous British inquiry said President Vladimir Putin probably approved the 2006 murder of ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko with radioactive polonium-210 in London. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied any involvement in the killing.