EU to recall envoy to Russia over spy attack

EU leaders decided Friday to recall the bloc's envoy to Russia after backing Britain's assessment that Moscow was likely behind a nerve agent attack on an ex-spy, officials said.

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May greets EU Council President Donald Tusk at 10 Downing Street on March 1

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May greets EU Council President Donald Tusk at 10 Downing Street on March 1 Source: AAP

A number of EU countries are also considering expelling Russian diplomats or recalling their own envoys following the nerve agent attack on Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, England.
"After agreeing on attribution, they continued the discussions on how could they go beyond just words and actually really have some deeds," a senior EU official said after the first day of the summit.

"Some member states are looking into possibly expelling Russian diplomats or recalling national diplomats.

"But there was also an agreement to recall the EU ambassador to Moscow for consultations."

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte confirmed the recall of the EU envoy.

Another EU source told AFP the recall was a "show of intent".

The 28 EU leaders said in a statement "that it is highly likely that the Russian Federation is responsible and that there is no plausible alternative explanation".

Lithuania's outspoken President Dalia Grybauskaite said on the way into the summit that she was giving serious thought to following Britain's lead in taking steps against Moscow.

Britain has expelled 23 Russian diplomats and severed some high-level ties.

"All of us we are considering such measures," Grybauskaite said.

Share
2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AFP, SBS


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world
EU to recall envoy to Russia over spy attack | SBS News