UK calls on Russia to give details of nerve attack
CHOCKED, AGAIN Novichok was used on the Skripals
LONDON : Four months after a former spy and his daughter were allegedly poisoned by Russia with a nerve agent called Novichok, the Theresa May government on Thursday asked Moscow to explain the poisoning of two more people with the “exact same nerve agent”.
The two people affected in Salisbury, south-west England, are reported to be Charlie Rowley, 45, and Dawn Sturgess, 44, who fell ill at a house in Amesbury on Saturday and remain in a critical condition in hospital.
Former Russian spy Sergei Kripan and his daughter Yulia were attacked by the nerve agent in March in Salisbury, but have since been discharged from hospital.
Russia strongly denied involvement, but the incident sparked off a wave of reprisals and counter-reprisals between London and Moscow.
Home secretary Sajid Javid told parliament: “As we did before we will be consulting with our international partners and allies following these latest developments. The eyes of the world are currently on Russia, not least because of the World Cup”.
“It is now time that the Russian state comes forward and explains exactly what has gone on. Let me be clear – we do not have a quarrel with the Russian people. Rather, it is the actions of the Russian government”.
“We will stand up to the actions that threaten our security and the security of our partners. It is unacceptable for our people to be either deliberate or accidental targets, or for our streets, our parks, our towns to be dumping grounds for poison”.
Javid said 100 counter-terrorism officers were working with the Wiltshire Police on the latest incident, adding that it is “completely unacceptable” for people to be either deliberate or accidental targets, or for British streets, parks, towns, to be “dumping grounds for poison.”
Before Javid’s statement made following a meeting of the government’s emergency committee, security minister, Ben Wallace, held Russia responsible and called on Moscow to help authorities keep the people of Britain safe by giving information.
Wallace said: “Based on the evidence we had at the time of the Skripal attack, the knowledge they (Russia) had developed novichok, they had explored assassination programmes in the past, they had motive, form and stated policy, we would still assert to a very high assurance that the Russian state was behind the original attack.