Sergei Skripal: Putin smirks after being asked about poisoning
AN AWKWARD moment for Vladimir Putin has done nothing to shame Russia, with the nuclear power hitting back at a stark ultimatum from Great Britain.
RUSSIA has warned Britain against threatening a nuclear power and issuing ultimatums as the fallout from the poisoning of a double agent grows.
Britain has accused Russia of being responsible for last week’s attack on Sergei Skripal and his 33-year-old daughter Yulia.
“No one can come to Parliament and say: ‘I give Russia 24 hours’,” said Maria Zakharova, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman, referencing British Prime Minister Theresa May’s demand that Vladimir Putin explain himself within 24 hours.
“When a foreign affairs body of a country is headed by people who have absolutely nothing to do with foreign policy, who built their career on populism ... it is normal for them to come out and start scaremongering. Do not (try to) scare us.”
The Russian chemist who helped develop the Soviet-era nerve agent used to poison Mr Skripal has insisted only Moscow could be behind the attack.
Vil Mirzayanov, 83, who now lives in the United States told Reuters he had no doubt that Mr Putin was responsible, given Russia maintained tight control over its Novichok stockpile.
He also said the agent was too complicated for a non-state actor to have weaponised.
The former Soviet scientist spent years testing and improving Novichok, the name given to a group of chemical weapons that Russia secretly created during the latter stages of the Cold War.
Mr Mirzayanov said the program eventually produced tons of the agent which Russia had never acknowledged.
Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin responded with an answer on agriculture when directly asked if Russia was behind the poisoning.
The Russian President smirked after BBC journalist Steve Rosenberg asked if Russia was responsible for the attack.
Rosenberg was at Russia’s National Grain Centre when he asked Mr Putin about the poisoning on UK soil which the British government has already blamed on the Kremlin.
“We’re dealing with agriculture here, as you see, to create great conditions for people’s lives, and you talk to me about some tragedies,” Putin replied in Russian.
“First, get to the bottom of it there, then we’ll discuss this.”
Rosenberg’s tweet has been liked and retweeted thousands of times with his video amassing more than 670,000 views.
He was lauded on social media for asking the question directly while others noted Mr Putin didn’t say no.
Fair play to BBC News reporter Steve Rosenberg who walked straight up to Putin and asked if Russia was behind the Skripal poisoning. Wow.
— Patrick Smith (@psmith) March 12, 2018
Straight for the jugular. Excellent reporting!
— Graeme Bandeira (@GraemeBandeira) March 13, 2018
Just doing your job, I know, but admirable all the same.
— Tim Unwin (@t_unwin) March 13, 2018
Good for you for putting the question to him.
— Daniel Baer (@danbbaer) March 13, 2018
I note he didn't say "no".
Mr Skripal, 66, and his daughter, 33, were attacked in Salisbury, southwest England, on March 4 in what British authorities believe was a deliberately targeted incident.
The pair remain in a critical condition in hospital.
The nerve agent that poisoned them, Novichok or newcomer, is a military-grade substance developed by Russia.
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned his country will only co-operate with Britain on the investigation if it receives samples of the nerve agent that is believed to have been used.
Speaking in Moscow, Mr Lavrov said his country’s requests to see samples of the nerve agent have been turned down and insisted that Russia is “not to blame” for the poisoning.
“We have already made a statement to say this is nonsense,” he said. “We have nothing to do with this.”
The Russian Embassy in London also tweeted that it will not respond to the ultimatum without the samples.
Meanwhile, in a blistering attack the Russian embassy threatened retaliation if British Prime Minister Theresa May responds with “punitive measures”.
The embassy said it was a crooked attempt to discredit Russia and “any threat to take punitive measures against Russia will meet with a response. The British side should be aware of that.”
6/7 Any threat to take “punitive†measures against Russia will meet with a response. The British side should be aware of that. pic.twitter.com/DFAaB5orQE
— Russian Embassy, UK (@RussianEmbassy) March 13, 2018
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