US faces deadline for new Russia sanctions over nerve attack

The United States faces a deadline Tuesday that could lead to fresh sanctions on Russia over an attempted assassination with a lethal nerve agent of a former spy in Britain.

The State Department on August 6 found that Russia had violated a 1991 US law that seeks the elimination of chemical and biological weapons.

The determination came after Britain said that Russian operatives on March 4 attempted to kill former intelligence agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia Skripal in Salisbury using Novichok, a military-grade nerve agent developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Under the US law, the State Department must report to Congress within three months whether Russia has come into compliance or impose a second round of sanctions.

State Department spokesman Robert Palladino said the three-month deadline is Tuesday.

"The conditions that we would have to certify are that Russia has ceased and assured that it will not use chemical weapons again, and that it has allowed international inspectors to verify those assurances," Palladino said.

"So, have they taken the steps to get back into compliance is the issue."
After the initial US determination, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia would respond to any measures "with the principle of reciprocity."