London, April 12 (PTI): The world’s chemical weapons watchdog today confirmed UK’s findings that the source of the military-grade deadly nerve agent used in an attack on a former Russian spy and his daughter in Salisbury originally came from Russia.
The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said the chemical used against Sergei and Yulia Skripal was “of high purity”, without mentioning the exact name of the substance which will be reserved for the complete classified report it has prepared.
In a declassified summary of its findings, however, the OPCW did not make any assessment on who carried out the March 4 attack on 66-year-old former double agent Sergei and his daughter Yulia in the English city of Salisbury that also injured a police officer.
He said the watchdog’s findings were based on testing in four independent, highly reputable laboratories around the world, all of which returned the same “conclusive” results.
The minister said the UK had asked the OPCW to publish the executive summary of its findings in the “interest of transparency” and called a session of the OPCW Executive Council next Wednesday to discuss next steps. “The UK’s finding of a Soviet era Novichok stock of nerve agent used in the attack against the Skripals had been presented before the House of Commons by British Prime Minister Theresa May last month, when she declared that Russia was “culpable”.
The UK government has since made several statements pointing the finger of blame of the Kremlin and expelled Russian diplomats in retaliation of the poisoning of the Skripals.
The incident has led to a diplomatic crisis between Moscow and the West as Moscow denies any involvement and accuses Britain of inventing a “fake story”.
The OPCW report comes as Yulia turned down help from the Russian embassy in a statement issued through Scotland Yard on Wednesday to say that she was “safe” and trying to come to terms with her new life.
The 33-year-old Russian citizen has been taken to a secure location after being discharged from Salisbury District Hospital earlier this week.
In her statement, she said that she has been made aware of the Russian embassy’s attempts to contact her but she did not wish to avail of their services for the moment.
Making a specific reference to her Russia-based cousin, Viktoria, she said that “her opinions and assertions are not mine and they are not my father’s”.
The Russian embassy in London immediately raised doubts over the authenticity of the statement, claiming it “only strengthens suspicions that we are dealing with a forcible isolation of the Russian citizen”.
Sergei Skripal remains in hospital as he recovers from the effects of the toxic nerve agent. His daughter thanked the Salisbury hospital staff, adding: “I have left my father in their care, and he is still seriously ill. I too am still suffering with the effects of the nerve agent used against us.”
The UK’s intelligence officials are believed to be in talks with the CIA over the possible repatriation of the Skripals to the US or another friendly country for their safety.
