War of words over former spy’s poisoning gets uglier

MOSCOW >> The war of words between Russia and Britain over an exspy’s poisoning got uglier Wednesday as the U.K. foreign secretary called it vomit-inducing that Russian President Vladimir Putin is rejoicing over hosting the World Cup. Russia shot back that Boris Johnson is “poisoned with venom of malice and hate.”

The heated exchange came in the deepening diplomatic crisis over the March 4 poisoning of Russian ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in the English city of Salisbury. Britain maintains Russia used a military-grade nerve agent known as Novichok in the attack, which left the father and daughter in critical condition. Moscow has fiercely denied involvement.

Johnson on Wednesday repeated Britain’s position that responsibility for the poisoning leads “back to the Russian state and those at the top.” He added that the attack had prompted “a mountain of disgust globally,” and that he had been pleasantly surprised “at the strength of the solidarity that there is with the U.K.”

Johnson agreed with a Labour lawmaker who likened the World Cup hosted by Russia this summer to Adolf Hitler’s use of the 1936 Olympics for political purposes.

“I think the comparison with 1936 is certainly right,” he said. “I think it’s an emetic prospect, frankly, to think of Putin glorying in this sporting event.”

The Russian Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, said Johnson is “poisoned with venom of malice and hate, unprofessionalism and boorishness,” adding that “it’s scary to remember that this person represents the political leadership of a nuclear power.”

She said on Facebook that Johnson’s comments reflected London’s efforts to cast Russia as an enemy using the most absurd reasons in order to boycott the World Cup.

“But at what price?” she said. “At the price of provocations, setting nations and people against one another and undermining international peace and stability. Isn’t the price too high?”

Zakharova noted that Johnson’s comments about the 1936 Olympics and the World Cup s words were an “unacceptable and unworthy” parallel toward Russia, a “nation that lost millions of lives in fighting Nazism.”

Yermakov accused Britain of “hiding facts” and warned that key evidence might “disappear.”