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                                                                                         WORLD NEWS Monday 19 March 2018


















            Amid spy row, UK accuses Russia of stockpiling a nerve agent



                                                                      plied: "I don't know."       which  clouded  the  run-up  meet  this  week  to  discuss
                                                                      The  British  government  dis-  to  Sunday's  presidential  what  further  measures  the
                                                                      missed  the  ambassador's  election  in  Russia.  Presi-  country might take.
                                                                      suggestion as "nonsense."    dent Vladimir Putin is widely  He  said  these  could  in-
                                                                      Johnson said it was "not the  expected  to  win  a  fourth  clude “defending ourselves
                                                                      response of a country that  term.                         against      cyber-attack,
                                                                      really  believed  itself  to  be  Western  powers  see  the  (and)  looking  at  any  eco-
                                                                      innocent."                   poisoning of the Skripals as  nomic measures that could
                                                                      Britain  and  Russia  have  the  latest  sign  of  increas-  be  taken  against  Russians
                                                                      each  expelled  23  diplo-   ingly aggressive Russian in-  who  corruptly  obtained
                                                                      mats, broken off high-level  terference in foreign coun-  their  wealth.”  The  spy  dis-
                                                                      contacts  and  taken  other  tries.                       pute has sent U.K.-Russia re-
                                                                      punitive  steps  in  the  esca-  Johnson  said  Britain's  Na-  lations to Cold War-levels of
                                                                      lating  tit-for-tat  dispute,  tional  Security  Council  will  tension.q

            Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson speaks at a joint press
            conference with the Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz
            during a visit to the Battle of Britain Bunker, in Uxbridge, England.
                                      (Tolga Akmen/Pool Photo via AP)

            By JILL LAWLESS              He  also  said  officials  from
            LONDON  (AP)  —  Britain's  the Netherlands-based Or-
            foreign  minister  said  Sun-  ganization  for  the  Prohibi-
            day  that  he  has  evidence  tion of Chemical Weapons
            Russia has been stockpiling  would arrive Monday in Brit-
            a  nerve  agent  in  violation  ain to take samples of the
            of  international  law  "very  nerve agent used to poison
            likely for the purposes of as-  the Skripals.
            sassination."                Britain  says  it  is  Novichok,
            Foreign   Secretary   Boris  a  class  of  powerful  nerve
            Johnson  said  the  trail  of  agent developed in the So-
            blame for the poisoning of  viet  Union  toward  the  end
            former  Russian  spy  Sergei  of the Cold War. Tests to in-
            Skripal  and  his  daughter  dependently verify the Brit-
            Yulia  in  the  English  city  of  ish  findings  are  expected
            Salisbury  "leads  inexorably  to take at least two weeks,
            to the Kremlin."             Britain's Foreign Office said.
            His comment came after a  Vladimir Chizhov, Moscow's
            Russian  envoy  suggested  EU ambassador, said Russia
            the toxin used to poison the  has no chemical weapons
            Skripals  could  have  come  stockpiles and was not be-
            from a U.K. lab.             hind the poisoning.
            Johnson told reporters that  "Russia  had  nothing  to  do
            Britain has information that  with  it,"  Chizhov  told  the
            within the last 10 years, "the  BBC.
            Russian state has been en-   Chizhov  pointed  out  that
            gaged  in  investigating  the  the  U.K.  chemical  weap-
            delivery  of  such  agents,  ons research facility, Porton
            Novichok  agents  ...  very  Down,  is  only  eight  miles
            likely for the purposes of as-  (12  kilometers)  from  Salis-
            sassination."                bury,  where  Sergei  Skripal
            He  said  "they  have  been  —  a  former  Russian  intelli-
            producing  and  stockpiling  gence officer convicted in
            Novichok, contrary to what  his home country of spying
            they have been saying."      for Britain— and his daugh-
            Johnson  said  he  will  brief  ter were found on March 4.
            European  Union  foreign  They remain in critical con-
            ministers on the case Mon-   dition.
            day  before  meeting  with  Asked whether he was say-
            NATO     Secretary-General  ing  that  Porton  Down  was
            Jens Stoltenberg.            responsible,  Chizhov  re-
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