Twitter
Advertisement

Russia says Europe being drawn into Anglo-American anti-Russia campaign

The EU has called back its ambassador in Moscow for consultations relating to the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in Britain, and EU leaders have backed Britain's assertion that Moscow is likely to blame for the poisoning.

Latest News
article-main
Russian President Vladimir Putin
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

European Union leaders are being drawn into an anti-Russian campaign instigated by London and Washington to drive a wedge between Moscow and the bloc, Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Friday.

The EU has called back its ambassador in Moscow for consultations relating to the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in Britain, and EU leaders have backed Britain's assertion that Moscow is likely to blame for the poisoning.

Moscow denies it had anything to do Skripal's poisoning. The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement it regretted that EU leaders backed Britain's position, saying the only explanation for doing that was to help British Prime Minister Theresa May out of a difficult position.

Several European governments moved closer on Friday to expelling Russian diplomats in a show of support for Britain, which ordered out 23 "undeclared intelligence agents" after a nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy.

In a boost for Prime Minister Theresa May, the European Union as a whole agreed late on Thursday to pin the blame on Moscow for the attack, which a judge in England said may have left Sergei Skripal and his daughter brain damaged.

That hardened up previous EU language on the issue as French President Emmanuel Macron and others helped May overcome hesitation on the part of some of Moscow's friendlier states, some of whom questioned how definitive Britain's evidence is.

In a symbolic move that displayed unity of purpose, the bloc also recalled the EU ambassador to Russia for consultations -- a conventional form of diplomatic protest.
And in a sign that nations were prepared to go further to punish Russia, which denies any involvement in the attack, several EU leaders said on Friday they were considering expelling diplomats.

"What we will now consider in the coming days is whether we want to take individual action relating to Russian diplomats in Ireland," Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar told reporters as he arrived at the second day of an EU summit in Brussels.

"So we would have to do a security assessment just like they (Britain) did ... We're not going to randomly expel people."
Britain has been pressing for coordinated action against Russia after the Skripals were found slumped on a bench in the English city of Salisbury on March 4 in what was the first known offensive use of a nerve toxin in Europe since World War Two.

Some British officials were pressing other countries to expel diplomats after London told 23 Russians to leave, a move followed by measures in Moscow, including the closure of Britain's cultural centre in St Petersburg.

But first May had to convince others to back a tough statement saying that the EU "agreed" with her government "that it is highly likely that the Russian Federation is responsible and that there is no plausible alternative explanation".

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement