Skripal Case: Russia Says UK Is ’Playing With Fire and Will Be Sorry’
Local Editor
As the developments of the Skripal case escalate, Russia's ambassador to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya warned British officials they are "playing with fire" and will be "sorry" over their response to the poisoning of a former double agent and his daughter in Salisbury.
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Theresa May claimed it was "highly likely" that Russia was behind the attack, with the UK and a number of Western allies expelling more than 150 diplomats in response.
Moscow, for its part, said it will respond to such measures in kind and speaking at a UN Security Council meeting that the Russians called over the poisoning, Nebenzya called May's allegations "horrific and unsubstantiated".
"Couldn't you come up with a better fake story?" he asked at a UN Security Council meeting, adding: "We have told our British colleagues that you're playing with fire and you'll be sorry."
In this regard, Russia called the meeting after the country was locked out of an investigation of the Salisbury poisoning by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons [OPCW].
Britain called on the watchdog group to investigate after ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, were poisoned last month. Officials said the nerve agent used in the attack was novichok, a class of nerve agents developed by the Soviet Union in the late 1990s.
Nebenzya, however, said the poison had been developed in many countries, "in spite of the obviously Russian name". He also accused Britain of attempting to "discredit and delegitimize" Russia.
Russia had called for a joint investigation into the poisoning - a suggestion that the Hague-based OPCW ultimately voted down.
In the same respect, Russia's Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia may not be able to accept the results of the investigation if it cannot participate.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
Comments
- Related News
