U.S., EU expels Russian diplomats over UK nerve agent attack
  • 6 years ago
The U.S. has joined a host of other nations in expelling Russian diplomats in a coordinated response to the nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy in the UK.
Ro Aram reports.

The United States has banded together with several EU nations, as well as Canada and Ukraine, to punish Russia for the poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury earlier this month.
Their announcements were timed within a few hours on Monday for maximum effect.
Washington is expelling 60 Russian diplomats and intelligence officers, which is President Trump's strongest action against Russia since coming to office.
Trump seems to be bowing to pressure from Democrats and some Republicans to take a tougher stance against the Kremlin.

"The president wants to work with Russia, but their actions sometimes don't allow that to happen. The poisoning in the U.K. that has kind of led to today's announcement was a very brazen action, it was a reckless action."

In total, at least 21 countries have ousted more than 135 Russians, including 23 kicked out earlier by the UK, marking the biggest Western expulsion of Russian diplomats since the height of the Cold War.
British Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed the show of solidarity, saying it sent the "strongest signal to Russia that it cannot continue to flout international law."
Moscow hit back by threatening to kick out an equal number of foreign diplomats.
Russia's Embassy in Washington also asked its Twitter followers to vote which U.S. consulate in Russia it should close.
Moscow continues to deny it used a Soviet-era nerve agent to poison Skripal.
Ro Aram, Arirang News.
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