Yahoo News Former ambassador says there is 'zero evidence' nerve agent used against Sergei Skripal was made in Russia
The former British Ambassador to Uzbekistan has said there is ‘zero evidence’ the nerve agent used in the attack against former double agent Sergei Skripal was manufactured in Russia.
Craig Murray also claimed Theresa May was putting pressure on Porton Down chemical scientists to identify the nerve gas as being manufactured in Russian, despite there being no evidence to prove it.
He said that the terminology now used by the Government to describe the chemical attack amounted to ‘carefully worded propaganda’.
‘I have now received confirmation from a well placed FCO source that Porton Down scientists are not able to identify the nerve gas as being of Russian manufacture, and have been resentful of the pressure being placed on them to do so,’ said the former diplomat.
‘Porton Down would only sign up to the formulation “of a type developed by Russia” after a rather difficult meeting where this was agreed as a compromise formulation.’
‘Note developed, not made, produced or manufactured. It is very carefully worded propaganda. Of a type developed by liars.’
Furthermore, he claims, the view amongst chemical weapons is that Russia may not even have succeeded in manufacturing the ‘Novichok’ agent.
‘Porton Down is still not certain it is the Russians who have apparently synthesised a “Novichok”.’ he said.
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Mr Murray, who has visited the chemical site in Russia where Novichok is said to have been developed, first voiced his concerns in a blog post on Wednesday.
He comparing current blaming of Russia to the Iraqi weapons of mass destruction scandal.
The blog post reads: ‘The same people who assured you that Saddam Hussein had WMD’s now assure you Russian “novochok” nerve agents are being wielded by Vladimir Putin to attack people on British soil.
‘As with the Iraqi WMD dossier, it is essential to comb the evidence very finely. A vital missing word from Theresa May’s statement yesterday was “only”. She did not state that the nerve agent used was manufactured ONLY by Russia.
‘She rather stated this group of nerve agents had been “developed by” Russia.
‘Antibiotics were first developed by a Scotsman, but that is not evidence that all antibiotics are today administered by Scots.
Jeremy Corbyn, whose response to the attack has led to criticism from some on his backbenches, said “the evidence points towards Russia” being responsible – but the possibility of gangsters being behind the attack rather than the Kremlin could not be excluded.
He warned Mrs May not to “rush way ahead of the evidence” – highlighting the way international crises such as the Iraq War had seen “clear thinking” overwhelmed by “emotion and hasty judgments”.
The Labour leader said that Mrs May was right on Monday to identify two possibilities for the source of the nerve agent – either Russia authorised the attack or had lost control of the Novichok substance.
“If the latter, a connection to Russian mafia-like groups that have been allowed to gain a toehold in Britain cannot be excluded,” he said.
The Labour leader, who opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq, added: “In my years in Parliament I have seen clear thinking in an international crisis overwhelmed by emotion and hasty judgments too many times.
“Flawed intelligence and dodgy dossiers led to the calamity of the Iraq invasion.”
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has said it is “overwhelmingly likely” that Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered the use of a nerve agent in the attack on ex-spy Sergei Skripal in Britain.
Mr Johnson’s decision to place blame for the attack in Salisbury on Mr Putin personally came as Britain awaited Moscow’s response to the expulsion of 23 of its diplomats.
