Investigation urged over‘ poison’ attack

Raab: Russia must explain this violation

WORLD: Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has called on overseas allies to work together to support an investigation into the alleged Novichok poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

Mr Raab held talks on Thursday with German foreign minister Heiko Maas, in which they agreed the need for Russia to explain what had happened.

FOREIGN SECRETARY Dominic Raab has called on overseas allies to work together to support an investigation into the “utterly deplorable” alleged Novichok poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

Mr Raab held talks on Thursday with German foreign minister Heiko Maas, during which the pair agreed the need for Russia to explain what had happened.

It came after Downing Street warned there would be “severe consequences” for the people behind the attack – and did not rule out sanctions or fresh expulsions of diplomats.

Mr Raab said the poisoning of Mr Navalny was “utterly deplorable and a violation of international law”, adding that he and Mr Maas had agreed to support an investigation into the attack.

Both men said any use of Novichok “was a violation of the chemical- weapons convention and therefore a matter of international concern”, the Foreign Office said.

Boris Johnson has described the suspected deployment of the same chemical weapon used in the 2018 Salisbury poisonings as “outrageous” and vowed to ensure “justice is done”.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman, pressed on whether sanctions could be imposed on Russia or diplomats expelled, did not explicitly blame Moscow and said he would not “pre- empt what

might happen next”. He said the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons would play a key role in investigating what he described as an “attempted murder”.

Mr Johnson and his Foreign

Secretary also met US President Donald Trump’s senior adviser, Jared Kushner, and, although the conversation was centred on the Middle East, it was likely Mr Navalny was discussed.

The opposition politician and corruption investigator fell ill on a flight back to Moscow from Siberia on August 20 before being transferred to Berlin.

The 44- year- old remains on a ventilator in intensive care.

On Wednesday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Mr Navalny was the victim of “attempted murder by poisoning” with Novichok and added that the aim was to silence the opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Leeds University Russian lecturer Dr Ilya Yablokov described the alleged poisoning as a “worrying sign” as “either the Government is unable to control [ chemical weapons] or that the Kremlin- allied groups of powerful businessmen have violated the existing consensus of not hurting Alexei Navalny”.

“Either way it shows the dreadful stage of evolution of the Russian political regime.”

He added that Russia’s political interference across the globe may only have a “limited effect” as Russian trolls and hackers exploit divisions that already exist.

“These come with corruption, populism and social polarisation as well as the failures to represent all social classes,” Dr Yablokov said, adding that the solutions were “in the hands of our own politicians”.

Utterly deplorable and a violation of international law. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, speaking yesterday.