Putin: We’ll poison our enemies
Russian leader’s chilling threat – as policeman struck down by chemical used in spy attack battles for his life
A POLICEMAN struck down by the nerve agent used in the assassination attempt in Salisbury was fighting for his life in intensive care last night.
The officer was among the first on the scene of the suspected Kremlin-backed attack on a former Russian double agent in the city on Sunday afternoon.
Scotland Yard refused to name the nerve agent used, but it is understood defence officials suspect the chemicals involved may point to them being developed in Russia.
The dramatic development came as President Vladimir Putin attacked Western sanctions against his country, saying ‘we will win in the long run’ and issuing the chilling warning: ‘Those who serve us with poison will eventually swallow it and poison themselves.’
The police officer was among up to ten emergency service workers examined at Salisbury District Hospital on Sunday evening. It is understood he was discharged from hospital before his symptoms worsened.
The former double agent, Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, also remain in intensive care following what police said was a targeted attack they described as attempted murder. Experts believe the chemical weapon used could be VX, sarin or the lethal ‘Novichok’ family developed by the former Soviet Union. Security sources said it was so rare it took experts at the Porton Down military research base more than 48 hours to identify.
They said the colourless, tasteless chemical could only have been made in a few laboratories in the world, all of which are controlled by governments.
As hundreds of counter-terrorist police officers, MI5 officers and intelligence analysts worked to identify who was behind the attack, furious ministers were considering how best to send Moscow an unequivocal message.
There is private disbelief about the attack, which may have been revenge for the fact that Mr Skripal remained in contact with British military intelligence officers.
One senior Whitehall source told the Daily Mail: ‘It is increasingly looking like a statebacked attack. This has had an impact on ordinary British people and there is growing concern we have to be ready to respond.
‘If we are not willing to show some strength, what will be next? If Putin thinks he can do this with impunity then there will be no stopping him. This is normal people getting caught up in what is increasingly looking like a political attack by Putin. This demonstrates Russia’s capabilities and the harm the state can cause.’
At Scotland Yard, which has taken control of the inquiry, the country’s top counter-terrorism officer, Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, urged anyone who feels unwell after being in Salisbury on Sunday to seek medical advice.
He said: ‘We are treating this as a major incident involving an attempted murder by the administration of a nerve agent.
‘Two people remain in hospital in a critical condition. A police officer who was among the first responders also remains in hospital in a serious condition and is continuing to receive intensive care.’
Scientific tests by Government experts have identified the specific nerve agent used in the attack.
The best known are VX, used in the murder of the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, and sarin, which killed scores in Syria during a government air strike last year.
But sources described the specific nerve agent as ‘unusual’ and highlighted the length of time it took to identify it.
One expert said this points to the ‘Novichok’ family of nerve agents secretly developed by the Soviet Union in the 1970s and 1980s.
These chemicals, which kill by blocking nerve messages to vital organs, were designed to be even more potent, difficult to detect and able to beat Nato-approved protective equipment. There was renewed activity in Salisbury yesterday afternoon as a dozen police cars, fire engines and ambulances arrived in the city centre.
Officers raced inside Sarum House, next door to the restaurant Zizzi where Mr Skripal ate lunch with his daughter before falling ill.
Two women, who appeared shocked but in good health, were escorted outside by police officers and put in an ambulance.
On the outskirts of Salisbury, police extended the cordon around the Skripal family home to include the whole of the street and an adjacent road.
Extensive decontamination work has already taken place at the bench where the victims were found, the Italian restaurant and The Mill pub where Mr Skripal was a regular. Specialists in full protective clothing also descended on Salisbury District Hospital and an ambulance station.
In Russia, Mr Putin said on state television that Western sanctions were part of ‘illegitimate and unfair’ efforts to contain his country.
His threat that ‘those who serve us with poison will eventually swallow it and poison themselves’ follows an angry salvo from the Russian Embassy in London which accused the British media of baseless blame.
And a spokesman for Russia’s foreign ministry accused British politicians and journalists of using the incident to foster anti-Russian sentiment, saying: ‘It is difficult to see anything other than provocations aimed at harming the relations between our two countries.’ Sir Andrew Wood, a former British ambassador to Russia, told ITV News: ‘Russia provides its own provocations.’ He said his eyes ‘would be focused entirely on the Kremlin. Putin at the least creates the situation where these things are assumed by people to be not only authorised but in some way required. He has passed a law about the necessity of getting even with people who betray the motherland. So to that extent he has a responsibility.’
Major General Chip Chapman, a former adviser to the US military, said the attack appeared to be part of ‘asymmetric warfare’ conducted by Russia. Home Secretary Amber Rudd expressed her ‘ heartfelt thanks’ to the emergency services, adding: ‘My thoughts are with all those affected, including the police officer being treated in hospital.’
‘We must be ready to respond’ ‘Eyes focused on the Kremlin’