RTFri, 16 Mar 2018 12:42 UTC
© Reuters
France has undermined Theresa May's attempts to garner support for punitive action against Russia, saying it wants more proof Moscow was behind the Salisbury poisoning. It accused the PM of engaging in "fantasy politics."On Wednesday, May announced the expulsion of 23 Russian diplomats and the suspension of bilateral talks. May claimed Russia was "culpable" for the poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, which amounted to"unlawful use of force against the UK."
However, President Emmanuel Macron's spokesman suggested May was acting prematurely.
"We don't do fantasy politics. Once the elements are proven then the time will come for decisions to be made," Benjamin Griveaux told a news conference in Paris.
Griveaux added that
France was waiting for "definitive conclusions"and evidence that the "facts were completely true" before taking a position. He said that the Salisbury poisoning was a "serious act"against a strategic ally, but France would await evidence of Russian involvement before taking a position.
Russia has repeatedly asked for a sample of the toxin which was used to poison Skripal and his daughter. Moscow has denied any involvement in the incident.
However, Britain is not prepared to hand any samples over to Russia.Moscow's permanent representative to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzia, told the UN on Wednesday night: "We demand that material proof be provided of the allegedly found Russian trace in this high-resonance event. Without this, stating that there is incontrovertible truth is not something that we can take into account."
Russia's Ministry for Foreign Affairs branded May's statement as "an unprecedentedly crude provocation that undermines the foundations of a normal interstate dialogue between our countries."
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has also challenged May's evidence of Russian culpability. He believes there is not enough proof to conclude Russia was behind the incident.
"The government has access to information and intelligence on this matter which others don't. However, there is also a history in relation to weapons of mass destruction and intelligence which is problematic, to put it mildly," Corbyn's spokesman Seumas Milne told reporters. "I think the right approach is to seek the evidence to follow international treaties, particularly in relation to prohibitive chemical weapons."
Comment: While his spokesman slams Theresa May for 'fantasy politics', Macron, in solidarity with the war-mongers, has refused to visit the Russian expo stand at the Paris Book Salon. Fort Russ
reports:
French President Emmanuel Macron refused to visit the Russia expo stand - an honored guest at the Paris Book Salon, which opened on Thursday.
"We were informed from the embassy that we received an official letter from the Elysee Palace, which states that President Macron will not visit our stand," the representative of the Russian delegation, Yevgeny Reznichenko, told RIA Novosti. [...]
Earlier, the French leader said he was in solidarity with London's position on the "Skripal case" and in the coming days would report on what measures he would take against Russia.
He also supported a joint statement by the heads of the United States, the Federal Republic of Germany and Great Britain, which stated that the responsibility for poisoning of the former GRU officer and his daughter lies entirely with Moscow.
And, as usual, the US has leaped at the opportunity to bash Russia. RT
reports:
"The United States shares the United Kingdom's assessment that Russia is responsible for the reckless nerve agent attack on the British citizen and his daughter," the statement, issued in the wake of the UN Security Council meeting called by the UK over the issue, reads.
The statement then proceeds to allege that there is a "pattern of behavior in which Russia disregards the international rules-based order, undermines the sovereignty and security of countries worldwide, and attempts to subvert and discredit Western democratic institutions and processes."
And now France has
submitted:
"This despicable attack will have consequences and the president will act firmly with his partners," a French presidential source said, commenting on the poisoning of Skripal and his daughter in the UK's Salisbury in early March, as reported by Reuters.
Comment: While his spokesman slams Theresa May for 'fantasy politics', Macron, in solidarity with the war-mongers, has refused to visit the Russian expo stand at the Paris Book Salon. Fort Russ reports: And, as usual, the US has leaped at the opportunity to bash Russia. RT reports: And now France has submitted: