(Adnkronos) – The British government has summoned the Russian ambassador to the Foreign Office in response to the campaign of “hostile activities” that Moscow is conducting against the United Kingdom. The summons, British media explain, follows the publication of the report by the public inquiry commission tasked with shedding light on the attempted assassination of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal with the Novichok nerve agent in Salisbury in 2018. The commission declared Russian President Vladimir Putin “morally responsible” for the death of Dawn Sturgess, the 44-year-old mother of three and the sole victim in the incident, and accused the GRU (Russian military intelligence service) of carrying out the murder.
“The Salisbury poisonings shocked the Nation, and today’s findings are a stark reminder of the Kremlin’s disregard for innocent lives,” commented British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. “The United Kingdom will always oppose Putin’s brutal regime and denounce his murderous machinery for what it is,” he added.
Referring then to the sanctions imposed today by the United Kingdom, which targeted the GRU “in its entirety” and affected 11 “actors” believed to be behind Russia-sponsored hostile activities, Starmer stated that “they are the latest step in our unwavering defense of European security, as we continue to put pressure on Russia’s finances and strengthen Ukraine’s position at the negotiating table.”
