Russia told the UN security council on Wednesday that it had never made or even researched novichok nerve agents, which the UK alleges were used in the Salisbury attack on a former Russia spy and his daughter.
This fact alone means you should discount any arguments you hear about the possibility of other countries having inherited this technology, he said.
In his response, the Russian envoy to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, told the council: No scientific research or development under the title novichok were carried out. He alleged the Salisbury attack was a false-flag attack, possibly by the UK itself, intended to harm Russia’s reputation.
Most probable source of this agent are the countries who have carried out research on these weapons, including Britain, Nebenzia said.
The letter contains completely irresponsible statements which are even difficult for me to comment on using diplomatic vocabulary, the Russian envoy said.
He later told reporters that the case belonged at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague.
Allen pointed out that the UK had already called in the OPCW to take part in the investigation. He described extensive evidence that novichok nerve agents had been developed by the Soviet Union and bequeathed to Russia.
This is a defining moment. Time and time again, member states say they oppose the use of chemical weapons under any circumstance. Now, one member stands accused of using chemical weapons on the sovereign soil of another member. The credibility of this council will not survive if we fail to hold Russia accountable.
The French ambassador, François Delattre, made a similar declaration backing the UK position, offering the full support and complete solidarity of France for the UK.
We have reached a new stage: the use of a substance never declared to the OPCW used in a public area in the territory of a European country, DeLattre said.