Russia says UK authorities 'staged' poisoning of Skripal
The Russian Ministry of the Interior said that UK authorities themselves may have “staged” the attack on former intelligence agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, who were poisoned in Salisbury.
This was stated by the director of the Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control of the Russian Foreign Ministry Vladimir Ermakov, reported Nastoyashaya Vremya.
“Here, elementary logic suggests only two possible options: the British authorities either are not able to provide protection against this kind of – figuratively speaking, terrorist attack on their territory – or they directly or indirectly – I do not blame anyone – directed the attack on a Russian citizen (Julia Skripal). A third is simply not given,” Ermakov said, paraphrasing the words of British Prime Minister Theresa May.
Speaking in the British Parliament, May said it was “very likely” that Russia was involved in the poisoning of Skripal with the toxic substance Novichok, and also spoke of two options.
The Russian authorities did not give any explanation concerning Novichok. However, speaking about the “Ukrainian trace” of the substance, they stated that Novichok was made in the UK, the USA, the Czech Republic and Sweden, but was stored in the Baltic countries.
The head of the State Duma of the Russian Federation Vyacheslav Volodin expressed the same thoughts as Ermakov.
“Clearly, this is connected with the authorities, the secret service of Great Britain,” he said.
On March 4, Skripal and his daughter were found unconscious in the city of Salisbury. It was discovered that they had been poisoned with the nerve-paralyzing agent Novichok, which was developed in Russia. One of the developers of Novichok, the Russian chemist Vil Mirzayanov, said that if the former agent and his daughter were really poisoned by Novichok, they have no chance of recovery.
British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson said that he considers it “highly probable” that the poisoning of ex-intelligence agent Skripal was authorized personally by Russian President Vladimir Putin.