EU condemns spy hit as Britain slams 'absurd' Russia denials

The European Union today condemned the poisoning in Britain of a former Russian spy, and British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson described Moscow's claims that it is not responsible for the attack as absurd.

"The lives of many citizens were threatened by this reckless and illegal act," EU foreign ministers said in a statement in Brussels, where they were briefed by Johnson on the latest developments surrounding the March 4 poisoning in Salisbury that left Sergei Skripal and his daughter in critical condition.

Without explicitly blaming Russia or threatening any repercussions, the ministers called on Russia to "address urgently" British questions over its Novichok nerve agent program, and they expressed "unqualified solidarity" with Prime Minister Theresa May's government.

Johnson told reporters that "Russian denials grow increasingly absurd," with contradictory claims about whether Russia produced Novichok used in the attack.

"What people can see is that this is a classic Russian strategy of trying to conceal the needle of truth in a haystack of lies and obfuscation," he said.

Johnson said many EU countries have been victims of "malign Russian behavior" and that Moscow is "not fooling anybody anymore."
"We have been informed in great detail in recent days by our colleagues in Britain. All the information we have suggests that there is no alternative plausible explanation to the Russian side bearing a share of the responsibility," Maas said. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian agreed, saying: "We share the British analysis."