LONDON | The Latest: UK says Russia is playing 'dice' with UK lives
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LONDON | The Latest: UK says Russia is playing 'dice' with UK lives
LONDON — The Latest on the poisoning of a Russian ex-spy and his daughter in Britain (all times local): 6:25 p.m.
Britain’s U.N. ambassador is accusing Russia of failing to uphold the ban on using chemical weapons by recklessly using a military-grade nerve agent to try to murder a former Russian spy and playing “dice” with the lives of the people of the southern England town where he lived.
Karen Pierce told the U.N. Security Council Thursday that the international community must take steps to safeguard people against the use of chemical weapons and “the threat of hostile foreign interference.”
She told reporters that Britain will be discussing next steps with its allies, stressing that the issue goes beyond Salisbury.
“We and our allies will want to think about how we push back on this sort of Russian activity which is not only malign, it’s also reckless,” Pierce said.
She said Britain is calling for the Chemical Weapons Convention and its watchdog agency to be strengthened, for a light to be shone on the use of state agencies to undermine the rule of law, and for sanctions and other measures to be used “to curb threats to our societies.” ____ 4:45 p.m.
The U.S., Germany, France and Canada say they back Britain’s finding that two suspects in the poisoning of a former spy were Russian military intelligence officers.
In a joint statement, leaders from the four countries joined Britain in reiterating their “outrage” at the use of a chemical nerve agent, Novichok, in March in the southern England city of Salisbury.
Saying Britain’s finding has been independently verified, they urged Russia to provide “full disclosure of its Novichok program.”
In addition, they said the operation was “almost certainly approved at a senior government level” and pledged to “continue to disrupt together the hostile activities of foreign intelligence networks on our territories.” ___ 12:40 p.m.
The Kremlin says Russia is not investigating the two men that Britain has named as suspects in the nerve agent attack on a Russian ex-spy.
Britain on Wednesday announced charges in absentia against two alleged Russian agents, and British Prime Minister Theresa May has accused the Russian government of orchestrating the March attack on ex-Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in the English city of Salisbury.
Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for President Vladimir Putin, said on Thursday that May’s accusations are “unacceptable” and that “no one in the Russian leadership” has anything to do with the poisoning.
Peskov said Russia “has no reasons” to investigate the two individuals charged on Wednesday because Britain has not asked for legal assistance on the case. ___ 9:30 a.m.
Britain’s security minister says Russian President Vladimir Putin bears ultimate responsibility for the Novichok nerve agent attack carried out in England.
Ben Wallace told the BBC on Thursday that Putin and his government “controls, funds and directs the military intelligence” unit known as the GRU that Britain believes used Novichok to try to kill ex-Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.
Britain plans to press its case against Russia in the U.N. Security Council Thursday. Many Western countries have already imposed sanctions on Russia because of the attack.
Walls said the GRU is directly linked to Russia’s Defense Ministry, the Kremlin and Putin’s office.
Britain on Wednesday announced charges against two suspected Russian agents in the March 4 attack on the Skripals in the city of Salisbury.
By Associated Press