The Kremlin said on Tuesday it was ready to cooperate if Britain asks it for help investigating an incident involving a former Russian double agent who fell ill after exposure to an unknown substance.
Sergei Skripal, once a colonel in Russia’s GRU military intelligence service, was critically ill in hospital on Tuesday after he was exposed to an unidentified substance in southern England.
"Nobody has approached us with such a request," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a conference call with reporters, when asked if the British authorities had been in touch seeking help. "Moscow is always open for cooperation."
When asked to respond to British media speculation that Russia had poisoned Skripal, Peskov said: "It didn’t take them long."
Calling the incident "a tragic situation," he said the Kremlin did not have information about what had happened.
"We don’t have information about what the reason (for the incident) could be, what this person was doing, and what it could be linked to," said Peskov.
He said he did not know whether Skripal was still formally a Russian national.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
