UK poison inquiry turns to Russian agency
Putin spokesman denies involvement, calls it ‘provocation’
LONDON — The same Russian military intelligence service now accused of disrupting the 2016 presidential election in the United States may also be responsible for the nerve agent attack in Britain against a former Russian spy — an audacious poisoning that led to a geopolitical confrontation this spring between Moscow and the West.
British investigators believe the March 4 attack on the former spy, Sergei Skripal, and his daughter, Yulia, was most probably carried out by current or former agents of the service, known as the GRU, who were sent to his home in southern England, according to one British official, one U.S. official and one former U.S. official familiar with the inquiry, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence.
British officials are closing in on identifying the individuals they believe carried out the operation, said the former U.S. official. At the same time, investigators have not ruled out the possibility that another Russian intelligence agency, or a privatized spinoff, could be responsible.
President Donald Trump has belittled the special counsel investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. But on Friday, the Justice Department announced an indictment of 12 GRU officers in the hacking of internal communications of the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton presidential campaign.
The indictment detailed a sophisticated operation, intended to disrupt the United States’ democratic process, carried out by the GRU, now known as the Main Directorate of the General Staff. Analysts and government officials say the GRU serves as an undercover strike force for the Kremlin in conflicts around the world.
The poisoning of Skripal and his daughter with a military grade nerve agent is a different type of operation, one that falls into the tradition of Russian and Soviet intelligence practices toward traitors. Skripal served in the GRU for about 15 years but also worked as an informant for MI6, Britain’s foreign intelligence service — a rare betrayal among GRU officers.
On Sunday, Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for President Vladimir Putin, dismissed the involvement of the GRU. “Russia is in no way involved in this episode,” he said. “We consider this whole thing a major provocation.”