UK-Russian relations won’t improve with May in power – Russian upper house chair
Relations between Moscow and London have hit a historic low since the Skripal scandal, and the situation will hardly change while UK PM Theresa May and her cabinet remain in power, according to the Russian upper house speaker.
The chairwoman of the Federation Council, Valentina Matvienko, slammed the UK government for spearheading a “Russophobic policy” and countering Russia with “dirty methods.”
“As for the relations between Russia and Great Britain, they are indeed at the worst level, probably in… history,” Matvienko said in an interview to RIA Novosti published on Wednesday.
“I believe that while people who promote Russophobia, who are imbued with this anti-Russian policy, are in power, an improvement in relations cannot be expected in the near future,” she stated.
Matvienko said she was referring to Theresa May and her cabinet among others “who are trying to stand at the forefront of Russophobic policy, to contribute to the fight against Russia with such dirty methods.”
However, there is nothing that actually impedes Moscow and London from improving ties, the speaker stressed, adding that it is only an “issue of political will.”
In March, former double-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter were poisoned in Salisbury, UK. London was quick to pin the blame on Moscow but failed to provide any proof, and expelled Russian diplomats, prompting its Western allies to follow suit.
“Once again – it was a provocation, thought-out, planned, but planned badly, so all the consequences of it are coming out today,” the upper house speaker said, adding that Russia will continue to insist on a proper investigation to seek out the perpetrators.
The course of the investigation into the high-profile case has been repeatedly slammed by Moscow. Russian Envoy to the UK Alexander Yakovenko has drawn attention to flaws in both the British and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) probe. He warned that London is apparently destroying evidence and is impeding the process.
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