Poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal

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On 4 March 2018, Sergei Skripal, a former Russian intelligence officer, and his daughter Yulia, visiting him from Moscow, were poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent in Salisbury, England.[1][2] As of 13 March 2018,[3] they remain critically ill at Salisbury District Hospital.[4][5] The poisoning is being investigated by British authorities as attempted murder.[2] The United Kingdom believes it is "highly likely" that the Russian government was behind the attack.[1]

In the 1990s, Skripal worked as an officer for Russia's Main Intelligence Directorate and acted as a double agent for the UK's Secret Intelligence Service from 1995 until his arrest in Moscow in December 2004. Two years later, he was convicted of high treason and imprisoned. He settled in the UK in 2010 following the Illegals Program spy swap. According to the Russian minister′s statement on 13 March 2018, Yulia Skripal is a Russian citizen; no information was made available to the Russian government as to Sergei Skripal′s nationality at the time of the poisoning incident.[6][7]

Poisoning

The Mill pub in Salisbury visited by Skripal on the day he was poisoned

On 4 March 2018, Skripal, a resident of Salsibury, and his 33-year-old daughter Yulia, who had flown into London's Heathrow Airport on a flight from Russia a day prior, were found unconscious (in a catatonic state[8]) on a public bench near a shopping centre in Salisbury.[9][10] Paramedics took them to Salisbury District Hospital where medical staff determined that the pair had been poisoned with a nerve agent.[5] The police declared a major incident as multiple agencies were involved.[4] Following the incident, health authorities checked 21 members of the emergency services and the public for symptoms;[11][12] three police officers were hospitalised – two had minor injuries, while one, Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey, who had been sent to Sergei Skripal's house, was in a serious condition.[13][14] As of 11 March 2018 Skripal and his daughter remain critically ill, and Bailey is seriously ill but stable.[15][16]

On 6 March, it was agreed under the National Counter Terrorism Policing Network that the Counter Terrorism Command based within the Metropolitan Police would take over the investigation from Wiltshire Police. Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, head of Counter Terrorism Policing, appealed for witnesses to the incident following a COBR meeting chaired by Home Secretary Amber Rudd.[17] Rudd said the samples of the nerve agent used in the attack had been tested at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down and was a "very rare" poison,[18] which Prime Minister Theresa May identified on 12 March as one of the Novichok class agents developed by the Soviet Union in the 1980s.[19]

On 9 March, 180 military experts in chemical warfare defence and decontamination, as well as 18 vehicles, were deployed to assist the Metropolitan Police "to remove a number of vehicles and objects from the scene" and look for any further traces of the nerve agent. The personnel were drawn mostly from the Army, including instructors from the Defence Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Centre and the 29 Explosive Ordnance Group, as well as from the Royal Marines and RAF. The vehicles included TPz Fuchs operated by Falcon Squadron from the Royal Tank Regiment.[20]

On 11 March, the UK government released "Advice for those who were in The Mill pub or Zizzi restaurant in Salisbury on Sunday 4 or Monday 5 March 2018", which while saying that "the risk to the general public from this substance ha[d] not changed and remain[ed] low", recommended the relevant members of the public to take measures such as washing or wiping their personal belongings.[21][22]

Reaction and aftermath

Official reaction and commentary

UK government

On 8 March 2018, UK Home Secretary Rudd said that the use of a nerve agent on UK soil was a "brazen and reckless act" of attempted murder "in the most cruel and public way".[23] Tom Tugendhat, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee of the House of Commons, said that the evidence indicated that the Russian government ordered the attempted murder, citing similarities to the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko and prior threats against Skripal's life.[18]

On 12 March 2018, speaking in the House of Commons, Prime Minister Theresa May delivered a statement on the incident, saying:

It is now clear that Mr Skripal and his daughter were poisoned with a military-grade nerve agent of a type developed by Russia. This is part of a group of nerve agents known as ‘Novichok’. Based on the positive identification of this chemical agent by world-leading experts at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down; our knowledge that Russia has previously produced this agent and would still be capable of doing so; Russia’s record of conducting state-sponsored assassinations; and our assessment that Russia views some defectors as legitimate targets for assassinations; the Government has concluded that it is highly likely that Russia was responsible for the act against Sergei and Yulia Skripal. Mr Speaker, there are therefore only two plausible explanations for what happened in Salisbury on the 4th of March. Either this was a direct act by the Russian State against our country. Or the Russian government lost control of this potentially catastrophically damaging nerve agent and allowed it to get into the hands of others."[24]

May also said that the UK government requested that Russia explain which of these two possibilities it was by the end of 13 March 2018.[24] She also said: ″[T]he extra-judicial killing of terrorists and dissidents outside Russia were given legal sanction by the Russian Parliament in 2006. And of course Russia used radiological substances in its barbaric assault on Mr Litvinenko.″ She said that the UK governmente would ″consider in detail the response from the Russian State" and in the event that there was no credible response, the government would ″conclude that this action amounts to an unlawful use of force by the Russian State against the United Kingdom" and measures would follow.[24] British media billed the statement as "Theresa May's ultimatum to Putin."[25][1]

Russian government

A spokesman for Russian president Vladimir Putin was on 6 March quoted as saying, ″We see this tragic situation, but we don't have information on what could have led to this, what he was engaged in″.[5] On 10 March 2018, the Russian embassy in London posted a tweet that linked the attempted murder of Skripal to the deaths of three other Russian expatriates in the UK, Alexander Litvinenko, Boris Berezovsky, and Alexander Perepilichny: ″What a coincidence! Both Litvinenko and Skripal worked for MI6. Berezovsky and Perepilichny were linked to UK special services.″[26][27] On 12 March 2018, both Vladimir Putin and his spokesman dismissed questions about the incident from the press as not relevant for the Russian government, with Peskov explaining that no official presentation about the issue had been made from the UK government, whereas "the aforesaid Russian citizen had worked for one of Britain's secret services" and the incident occurred on British soil.[28][29][30]

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has rejected Britain's claim of Russia's involvement in Skripal's poisoning, saying "This is all nonsense, we’ve got nothing to do with this."[31] He also accused the United Kingdom of spreading the "propaganda".[32][33] Lavrov said that Russia was "ready to cooperate" and demanded access to the samples of the nerve-agent which was used to poison Skripal. The request was rejected by the British government.[34]

Head of the Federation Council’s committee on international affairs Konstantin Kosachev told the Interfax news agency: "To sound an official version of events that has not been verified but is ‘politically tasty’ is first of all dishonest. Secondly, it violates the principle of the presumption of innocence, and thirdly it puts pressure on investigators."[35]

By the end of 13 March 2018, Moscow did not give any formal response to the UK government request that the Russian State explain the incident.[36] The Russian foreign ministry spokesperson, speaking on a Russian state television channel on the evening of 13 March, said that no one had the right to present Russia with 24 hour ultimatums.[37][38][39][40] The Russian Embassy in London posted several tweets on 13 March that said that "Moscow will not respond to London’s ultimatum until it receives samples of the chemical substance to which the UK investigators are referring."[41][42]

US government

On 12 March 2018, following Theresa May′s statement in Parliament, the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson released a statement that fully supported the stance of the UK government on the poisoning attack, including "its assessment that Russia was likely responsible for the nerve agent attack that took place in Salisbury".[43] Donald Trump said that Russia was likely responsible.[44]

Chinese government

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China spokesman Lu Kang said that "we have seen relevant reports. The authorities of both the UK and Russia made their statements on this issue, we hope that all interested sides will be able to find an appropriate solution to settle this issue relying on facts and by means of optimal channels".[45]

Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Director-General Ahmet Üzümcü, made the statement to a meeting of the executive council that the use of a nerve agent to poison was Skripals "of serious concern" and added: "It is extremely worrying that chemical agents are still being used to harm people. Those found responsible for this use must be held accountable for their actions."[46]

European Union and EU countries

European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans argued for "unequivocal, unwavering and very strong" European solidarity with the United Kingdom when speaking to lawmakers in Strasburg on 13 March.[47] Federica Mogherini, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, expressed shock and offered the block's support.[48] Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament's Brexit negotiator proclaimed solidarity with the British people.[49]

French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian called the incident "a totally unacceptable attack". His ministry's statement did not mention Russia.[47]

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned the attack "in the sharpest manner". She reportedly took Russia's suspected involvement "extraordinarily seriously" and urged Russia to "comprehensively and immediately" reveal its chemical weapons program to the OPCW.[47]

Russian state media commentary

For a few days following the poisoning, Russian state-run mainstream media outlets largely ignored the incident.[50][51]

On 7 March 2018, anchor Kirill Kleimyonov of the state TV station Channel One Russia's current affairs programme Vremya said that being "a traitor to the motherland" was one of the most hazardous professions and warned: "Don't choose England as a next country to live in. Whatever the reasons, whether you're a professional traitor to the motherland or you just hate your country in your spare time, I repeat, no matter, don't move to England. Something is not right there. Maybe it's the climate, but in recent years there have been too many strange incidents with a grave outcome. People get hanged, poisoned, they die in helicopter crashes and fall out of windows in industrial quantities."[52][53][54][50][55] Kleimyonov's commentary was accompanied by a report highlighting previous suspicious Russia-related deaths in the UK, namely those of financier Alexander Perepilichny, businessman Boris Berezovsky, ex-FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko, and radiation expert Matthew Puncher.[52] Puncher discovered that Litvinenko was poisoned by polonium; he died in 2006, five months after a trip to Russia.[56]

On 11 March 2018, the host of the Vesti Nedeli on Russian state television (Russia-1 channel of VGTRK), Dmitry Kiselyov, said that the Skripal affair was "completely wrung out and of little interest" and asserted that it was being used by the British to "nourish their Russophobia" and organise the boycott of the FIFA World Cup scheduled for June 2018. Kiselyov referred to London as a "pernicious place for Russian exiles".[57][58] Russian state television accused that it was actually Britain who poisoned the spy.[59]

Intelligence experts' commentary

Mark Galeotti of the Institute of International Relations Prague said that, assuming the poison attack was engineered by Moscow, said such act would violate the unwritten rules whereby exchanged agents would enjoy immunity. Galeotti surmised that Moscow might have thought that Skripal "was back in the game — working for British intelligence or another intelligence agency".[60]

Amy Knight, an expert in KGB history, said that the apart from pandering to his electorate's nationalist sentiments, Putin and his entourage had a message for the West: "You know we did it, and you know and we know you’re not going to do anything about it."[61]

Chemical experts' commentary

A week after the incident, professor Robert Stockman, of the University of Nottingham, said of nerve agents: "These agents react with water to degrade, including moisture in the air, and so in the UK they would have a very limited lifetime. This is presumably why the street in Salisbury was being hosed down as a precaution – it would effectively destroy the agent."[62]

Political ramifications

Within days following the poisoning, political pressure began to mount for the Theresa May government to take decisive action against whoever was behind the attack, with most politicians pointing the finger of suspicion at the Russian government.[63][60] The situation was made sensitive due to Russian president Vladimir Putin facing his fourth presidential election in mid-March and Russia hosting the football World Cup in June 2018.[60][64]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Asthana, Anushka; Roth, Andrew; Harding, Luke; MacAskill, Ewen (12 March 2018). "May issues ultimatum to Moscow over Salisbury poisoning". the Guardian. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  2. ^ a b Dodd, Vikram; Harding, Luke; MacAskill, Ewen (8 March 2018). "Sergei Skripal: former Russian spy poisoned with nerve gas, say police". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  3. ^ Dodd, Vikram; MacAskill, Ewen; Grierson, Jamie; Morris, Steven (9 March 2018). "Sergei Skripal attack: investigators wear protective suits at cemetery". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Critically ill man 'former Russian spy'". BBC News. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  5. ^ a b c "Russian spy: Russia 'has no information' on Sergei Skripal collapse". BBC News. 6 March 2018. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  6. ^ Лавров заявил о российском гражданстве Юлии Скрипаль RBC, 13 March 2018.
  7. ^ В МИДе прокомментировали историю с экс-полковником ГРУ Скрипалем RBC, 7 March 2018.
  8. ^ In Poisoning of Sergei Skripal, Russian Ex-Spy, U.K. Sees Cold War Echoes The New York Times, 6 March 2018.
  9. ^ "Russian spy: What we know so far". BBC News. 8 March 2018.
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  11. ^ "Up to 21 people treated after nerve agent attack on Russian spy Sergei Skripal". ITV News. 8 March 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  12. ^ Casciani, Dominic (9 March 2018). World at One. BBC Radio 4. Event occurs at 21m47s. Retrieved 9 March 2018. there was some erroneous reporting that there were 21 other people being treated, that is not true, there has only been these three casualties and they are all still in hospital
  13. ^ "Russian spy 'attacked with nerve agent'". BBC News. 7 March 2018.
  14. ^ Robert Mendick (9 March 2018). "Russian spy may have been poisoned at home, police believe, as military deployed to Salisbury". Telegraph.
  15. ^ "Russian ex-spy, daughter still critical". SBS. 11 March 2018.
  16. ^ Patrick Sawer (11 March 2018). "Poisoned police officer: 'I'm not a hero. I was just doing my job'". Telegraph.
  17. ^ "'More known' about substance in spy case". BBC News. 7 March 2018.
  18. ^ a b Rob Merrick (8 March 2018). "Russian spy: Poisoned Sergei Skripal's wife and son were murdered, alleges Conservative MP". Independent. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
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  20. ^ "Military deployed after spy poisoning". BBC News. 9 March 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  21. ^ "Public health advice for those who were in The Mill pub or Zizzi restaurant in Salisbury on Sunday 4th or Monday 5th March 2018" (PDF).
  22. ^ Russian spy: Salisbury diners told to wash possessions BBC, 11 March 2018.
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  24. ^ a b c PM Commons statement on Salisbury incident: 12 March 2018: Prime Minister Theresa May updated the House of Commons about the incident in Salisbury. gov.uk, 12 March 2018.
  25. ^ Theresa May's ultimatum to Putin: Explain yourself in next 24 hours or face retaliation, The Telegraph, 12 March 2018.
  26. ^ UK, Russian Embassy. "What a coincidence! Both Litvinenko and Skripal worked for MI6. Berezovsky and Perepilichny were linked to UK special services. Investigation details classified on grounds of national security.pic.twitter.com/LOkjKiX4wh".
  27. ^ Sergei Skripal: Russia links attempted murder to deaths of Kremlin enemies: Embassy issues provocative tweet as Cobra meeting hears that case involves 250 counter-terror police and 200 witnesses The Guardian, 10 March 2018.
  28. ^ Путин советует британцам самим разобраться с отравлением Скрипаля перед обсуждением с РФ TASS, 12 March 2018.
  29. ^ Putin advises Britons to get things clear with Skripal’s poisoning TASS, 12 March 2018.
  30. ^ В Кремле не слышали официальных заявлений Лондона о причастности России к отравлению Скрипаля Interfax, 12 March 2018.
  31. ^ "U.K.’s May Set to Huddle With Trump on Russia’s Role in Poisoning". Bloomberg. March 13, 2018.
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  38. ^ Захарова: никто не может выдвигать России 24-часовые ультиматумы TASS, 13 March 2018.
  39. ^ No one can deliver any 24-hour ultimatums to Russia — Foreign Ministry spokeswoman TASS, 13 March 2018.
  40. ^ 60 МИНУТ Russia-1, 13 March 2018, 19:00.
  41. ^ Russian spy: Embassy warns UK against 'punitive' measures BBC, 13 March 2018.
  42. ^ Russia warns Theresa May 'not to threaten a nuclear power' as Trump tells PM: 'We're with you all the way' Evening Standard, 13 March 2018.
  43. ^ Attributing Responsibility for the Nerve Agent Attack in the U.K. US Department of State, 12 March 2018.
  44. ^ "Trump: Russia likely poisoned ex-spy, 'based on all the evidence'". CNN. March 13, 2018.
  45. ^ "China hopes Russia, UK will properly handle poisoning case based on facts – PM NEWS Nigeria". PM NEWS Nigeria. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  46. ^ Sparrow, Andrew; Siddique, Haroon; Weaver, Matthew; Weaver, Matthew; MacAskill, Ewen; Kelner, Martha (13 March 2018). "Trump says US will condemn Russia if it is found to be behind Skripal poisoning – Politics live". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  47. ^ a b c "The Latest: Trump, May agree on consequences for poison use". AP. 13 March 2018. Archived from the original on 13 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  48. ^ "Despite Brexit, Britain wins EU support on nerve agent attack". Reuters. 13 March 2018. Archived from the original on 13 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  49. ^ "UK's effort to rally allies over Sergei Skripal poisoning may fall short". The Guardian. 13 March 2018. Archived from the original on 13 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  50. ^ a b Russian State TV Host Warns 'Traitors' After Skripal Poisoning Radio Liberty, 8 March 2018.
  51. ^ Russian spy: State TV anchor warns 'traitors', BBC, 8 March 2018.
  52. ^ a b Глава МИД Великобритании Борис Джонсон предположил, что за отравлением Сергея Скрипаля стоит Москва 1tv.ru, 7 March 2018.
  53. ^ Russian state TV warns 'traitors' not to settle in England The Guardian, 9 March 2018.
  54. ^ Sergei Skripal: Russian state TV anchor Kirill Kleimenov says it is 'rare that traitors live to old age': Warning comes days after Russian ex-spy was poisoned with a nerve agent The Independent, 8 March 2018.
  55. ^ Boris Johnson: UK will respond robustly if Russia poisoned spy The Guardian, 6 March 2018.
  56. ^ All the times Russia allegedly carried out assassinations on British soil Business Insider, 6 March 2018.
  57. ^ Вести недели с Дмитрием Киселевым от 11.03.18 (the relevant footage begins at 1:27:20), Vesti Nedeli, 11 March 2018.
  58. ^ Britain Poisoned Double Agent Skripal to 'Nourish Russophobia' — Russian State Media The Moscow Times, 12 March 2018.
  59. ^ Russian state TV accuses Britain of poisoning spy in special operation Reuters, 12 March 2018.
  60. ^ a b c Neil Buckley, David Bond, Henry Foy. The unanswered questions over the attack on a Russian double agent Financial Times, 9 March 2018 (print edition of 10 March 2018)
  61. ^ Amy Knight. Vladimir Putin’s Re-Election Strategy: Nukes and Assassins: Emboldened by Trump’s weak response, Putin and his cronies are saying: ‘You know we did it, and you know and we know you’re not going to do anything about it.’, 8 March 2018.
  62. ^ 'It's torture. You cannot imagine the horror': Scientist who helped create the lethal nerve agent Novichok used to attack Russian spy in Salisbury reveals its terrifying effects The Daily Mail, 12 March 2018.
  63. ^ Russian spy: May under pressure to take firm action BBC, 12 March 2018.
  64. ^ Russia spy attack: Theresa May has tried to back Vladimir Putin into a corner – the Kremlin will kick back The Independent, 12 March 2018.

External links

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