LONDON, June 21. /TASS/. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s remark about Moscow having "no qualms about using military-grade nerve agents on our streets," is irresponsible misinformation, the Russian embassy in London said in a statement on Thursday.
"In case Mr. Stoltenberg has evidence, he must present it immediately. Until then, his words are no more than groundless allegations with no facts and evidence to prove them," the statement reads.
The Russian embassy cited British National Security Adviser Mark Sedwill, pointing out that the investigation into the Salisbury incident was not over yet. In May, Sedwill said that no suspects had been identified so far. "All this confirms that the British authorities hastened to put the blame on Russia without charge or trial, making serious accusations against us a few days after the incident," the statement adds.
Skripal incident
According to London, former Russian military intelligence (GRU) Colonel Sergei Skripal, who had been convicted in Russia of spying for Great Britain and later swapped for Russian intelligence officers, and his daughter Yulia suffered the effects of an alleged nerve agent in the British city of Salisbury on March 4. Claiming that the substance used in the attack had been a Novichok-class nerve agent developed in the Soviet Union, London rushed to accuse Russia of being involved in the incident. Moscow rejected all of the United Kingdom’s accusations, saying that a program aimed at developing such a substance had existed neither in the Soviet Union nor in Russia.
However, the UK expelled 23 Russian diplomats and announced other restrictive measures against Moscow without presenting any evidence of its involvement in the incident. In retaliation to the UK’s steps, Russia expelled 23 British diplomats, closed the British consulate general in the city of St. Petersburg, while the British Council had to shut down its operations in Russia.