Lavrov reminds to UK that era of colonialism is over

Russia is in no way involved in poisoning of former Russian intelligence officer Sergey Skripal and his daughter and is ready for cooperation under the Chemical Weapons Convention, if Great Britain vouchsafes fulfilling its international obligations, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has announced at a news conference on March 13.

“It’s all nonsense; we are not engaged in it,” Lavrov said.

He stressed that before issuing ultimatums to Russia, Great Britain needs to observe its obligations in accordance with the international law, in particular, with the Chemical Weapons Convention. The minister said that Russia will fulfil its duties but expects that the UK will respond to a request to submit to the Russian side the poisonous substance mentioned by Prime Minister Theresa May and open the investigation process for Moscow.

“As soon as rumors arose that Skripal was poisoned by a substance produced in Russia, … we sent an official note to get this substance to let our experts analyze it. We also asked for access to all the facts connected with investigation, taking into account that one of the victims is Yulia Skripal, a Russian citizen,” Lavrov said. The Russian side received an “incomprehensive response” the essence of which was that no claim would be fulfilled, the minister continued. “Speaking of manners, one needs to remember that the era of colonialism is over long ago,” he stressed.

As EADaily reported earlier, Sergey Skripal and his daughter were found unconscious in a park in Salisbury. According to a medical assessment, they were poisoned by an unknown substance. Now, they are in hospital, their condition is still critical. Russian President Vladimir Putin advised that Great Britain deals with the poisoning on its own before discussing it with Moscow.