The World vs Russia
US, Germany and France back UK over Salisbury poisoning Nerve agent attack ‘assault on sovereignty and threat to security’
piled on Russia over the Salisbury spy attack as world leaders stood together in a joint fightback over the assassination plot on UK soil.
US president Donald Trump, French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Angela Merkel joined Theresa May to condemn the Kremlin over the Novichok nerve agent poisoning.
They agreed Moscow was to blame and ramped up calls for Vladimir Putin to “provide full and complete disclosure” of Russia’s Novichok programme.
They said in a joint statement: “This use of a military-grade nerve agent, of a type developed by Russia, constitutes the first offensive use of a nerve agent in Europe since the Second World War.
“It is an assault on the UK’s sovereignty and any such use by a state party is a clear violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and a breach of international law. It threatens the security of us all.”
Trump added: “It certainly looks like the Russians were behind it.”
The Prime Minister later said: “This happened in the UK, but it could have happened anywhere and we are taking a united stance against it.”
Russia warned it would kick out British officials in retaliation for the expulsion of 23 of its diplomats from our shores after Russia failed to come clean over Novichok.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow was “absolutely” preparing a response and dismissed the UK’s “boorish and unacceptable” blaming of Russia.
Boris Johnson said Putin “feels the ghost of Stalin” and is angry at Britain standing up against his bid to rebuild Russia in the
You had no idea what you were dealing with, you did a great job THERESA MAY TO COPS WHO ATTENDED SCENE
mould of the former Soviet dictator. The Foreign Secretary added: “There’s something in the kind of smug, sarcastic response we’ve heard from the Russians that to me indicates their fundamental guilt. They want to deny and at the same time glory in it.”
He said he hoped the expulsion of diplomats would “conclude the matter” but admitted “the Russians might conclude otherwise”.
Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, 66, and daughter Yulia, 33, remained critically ill in hospital last night after they were found unconscious on a bench in Salisbury, Wiltshire.
Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey, who fell ill from contamination after being one of the first to attend the scene, was said to be in a stable condition.
A sample of the nerve agent is to be sent for analysis to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the independent international body set up to stop chemical warfare.
Mrs May yesterday visited Salisbury including the Zizzi restaurant and Bishop’s Mill pub which the Skripals visited before they collapsed last week, and where traces of the poison were found. She said: “We do hold Russia culpable for this brazen, brazen act and despicable act.”
The PM praised scientists at nearby government science facility Porton
Putin feels the ghost of Stalin. The smug response from Russia indicates their guilt BORIS JOHNSON BLAMES RUSSIA FOR NERVE AGENT SPY ATTACK
Down where testing for the nerve agent was carried out. And she praised emergency crews working in Salisbury including Wiltshire Police officers Alex Way and Alex Collins, who went to the aid of the Skripals on March 4.
PC Collins told her they had believed the incident was a “routine call”. Mrs May said: “You had no idea what you were dealing with. You did a great job.”
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was under fire after suggesting other nations could have been responsible for the poisoning. Nineteen Labour backbenchers have signed a motion putting on record their full backing for the PM’s measures against Russia.
Mr Corbyn was forced to clarify that he did think evidence pointed towards Moscow. But he also warned Mrs May not to “rush way ahead of the evidence”.
He said: “Labour is of course no supporter of the Putin regime. However, that does not mean we should resign ourselves to a ‘new cold war’.”
Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said: “You have to be a conspiracy theorist of the wildest kind to believe there is anything other than fact about the statement that Russia has done this.”
Meanwhile the US has taken action over Moscow’s meddling in the 2016 US election. It put sanctions on Russian troll farm the Internet Research Agency, which put divisive political posts on US social media platforms during the election.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said: “I think you can see... we’re going to be tough on Russia until they decide to change their behaviour.”