UK PM: Join us against Russia

British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday called on European allies to “stand shoulder to shoulder” against the Russian threat that will continue for “years to come.”

“As a European democracy, the United Kingdom will stand shoulder to shoulder with the EU and with NATO to face these shared threats together,” May told European Union members in Brussels.

Moscow’s military-grade nerve-gas attack on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, this month in Salisbury, England, was “an indiscriminate and reckless act against the United Kingdom,” she said.

A doctor treating the Skripals said they were still under sedation and unable to communicate. He said they may have suffered serious brain damage in the attack.

Russia’s use of the nerve agent Novichok, developed by the old Soviet Union, was a “clear violation” of international law and constitutes a threat against all European nations that requires a unified response, according to May.

“The Russian threat does not respect borders, and as such we are all at risk,” May said.

The British leader, who last week ordered the expulsion of 23 Russian diplomats identified as spies, urged allies to stand up to the Russian threat.

“We want to work with our EU allies to uphold and protect the international rules-based order, to hold Russia to account for this flagrant breach of international laws, to ensure that such a heinous crime is never repeated, to protect our shared security in the face of the long-term challenge that Russia poses, ”she said.

A senior government official said Britain was “not looking for confrontation or regime change” but Russia “has shown itself to be a strategic enemy, not a strategic partner.”

Russia has called the accusations “nonsense.”

The US earlier joined France and Germany to sign a statement of solidarity with Britain.