Punish ball

If Moscow’s involvement in the poisoning of the former GRU Colonel Sergei Skripal and his daughter Julia will be confirmed, “it will be very difficult to imagine” the presence of British representatives at the World Cup, which should be held in Russia in the summer. According to the BBC, this was announced by Boris Johnson Foreign Minister British at the hearing in the UK parliament.

The minister promised a tough reaction if suspicions of the Russian authorities are justified.

Initially, Johnson's words were interpreted by the media in the sense that the British team would refuse to participate in the mundial. However, later the assistants of the minister explained the BBC that by representatives of Britain he meant officials, not athletes.

Today it is early to draw any specific conclusions, Johnson also noticed in his speech to the deputies, but Russia is a "dangerous and destructive force." The head of the Foreign Ministry recalled that in November 2006, the former FSB operative Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned in Britain; There is good evidence that the Russian authorities are involved in the murder.

Meanwhile, the Wiltshire County Police announced that, although there is no reason to qualify the Skripal incident as a terrorist attack, the investigation of the incident from the middle of March 6 has been led by the National counter -terrorist police network. It is this structure, explained in the publication, that has specialists who can conduct the necessary examinations.

The 66-year-old Skripal and his 33-year-old daughter who came to him from Russia were discovered on Sunday at the Maltings shopping center in Salisbury, Wiltshire, with symptoms of severe poisoning. Both remain in intensive care in critical condition.

After the incident, the police cordoned off the territory around Maltings, as well as a number of other city objects. Rescuers in complete protective equipment were disinfected of the streets, pouring them with a certain liquid from the brandspoits.

Three rescuers were also taken to a hospital with poisoning. Two complained about the carriage in the eyes and shortness of breath. They were released after assistance. The third victim remains in the hospital.

It is possible that Skripal and his daughter were poisoned in the Zizzi restaurant, located in Maltings. From the precaution, this restaurant is now closed.

What kind of substance the colonel, his daughter and rescuers were poisoned, have not yet been established.

Press Secretary of Vladimir Putin Dmitry Peskov rejected suspicions of Moscow involvement in the incident. In turn, the State Duma deputy from the LDPR Andrei Lugovoi, who is considered one of the executors of the murder of Litvinenko, said that the case of Skripal could be used by the British intelligence services for provocation against Russia.

Meanwhile, the British media reported on Tuesday that Skripal had previously submitted a statement to the police that he was afraid of his life.

On August 9, 2006, the Moscow District Military Court sentenced Skripal to 13 years in colony under Article 275 of the Criminal Code (state treason) for work for British intelligence Mi-6. Four years later, on July 9, 2010, the convicted was pardoned by then President Dmitry Medvedev and sent to Vienna as part of a large-scale exchange of spies between Russia and Western countries. The former colonel received a political officer in Britain and settled in Salisbury.