MOSCOW — Washington Post- 16 March 2018- British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said Friday it was “overwhelmingly likely” that Russian President Vladimir Putin was behind the poisoning of a Russian former spy, the most direct British accusation against the Russian leader to date.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov immediately shot back, saying that bringing up Putin in the context of the case was “shocking and unforgivable in terms of diplomatic behavior.”
Johnson’s comments followed Prime Minister Theresa May’s decision Wednesday to expel 23 Russian diplomats from Britain. Russia confirmed Friday it will expel British diplomats and halt high-level meetings in turn.
“Our quarrel is with Putin’s Kremlin, and with his decision — and we think it overwhelmingly likely that it was his decision — to direct the use of a nerve agent on the streets of the U.K., on the streets of Europe for the first time since the Second World War,” Johnson said during a visit to a museum in London.
The poisoning of 66-year-old Sergei Skripal and his 33-year-old daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury with a nerve agent identified by British authorities as one made only by Russia has thrown the two countries’ relations into a profound crisis.
In a statement released by May’s office, May, President Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said they shared the view of British investigators that “there is no plausible alternative explanation” for the attack. They added that “Russia’s failure to address the legitimate request by the U.K. government further underlines its responsibility.”
“It threatens the security of us all,” they added, without spelling out any possible further reprisals.