Russia’s proposal for a parallel joint inquiry into the poisoning of a Russian former double agent in England is a “perverse” attempt to escape blame, Britain told an emergency meeting of the global chemical weapons watchdog on Wednesday.

Moscow convened the meeting at the Hague of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons’ decision-making executive to counter accusations by Britain that it was behind the March 4th poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with a military-grade nerve toxin in the English city of Salisbury.

In a tweet, the British delegation said Moscow’s idea was “perverse . . . a diversionary tactic, and yet more disinformation designed to evade the questions the Russian authorities must answer”.

John Foggo, Britain’s acting envoy to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), said Russian assertions that the attack may have been carried out by Britain, the US or Sweden were “shameless, preposterous statements . . .

“It seems clear that Russia will never accept the legitimacy of any investigation into chemical weapons use unless it comes up with an answer Russia likes,” Foggo said in a statement to the closed-door meeting.

The EU also dismissed the proposal and diplomats said it was unlikely to be approved by the required two-thirds majority of the 41-nation executive of the OPCW.

Russia said it had the support of 14 countries. “We believe it is crucial to ensure this problem be resolved within the legal framework using the entire potential of the OPCW,” Russia’s representative to the watchdog, Aleksandr Shulgin, was quoted by the Russian news agency Tass as telling the meeting.

Russian president Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday the OPCW should draw a line under a case that has triggered the worst crisis in East-West relations since the Cold War, with retaliatory, tit-for-tat expulsions of scores of diplomats.

Scientists at the Porton Down biological and chemical weapons laboratory in England have concluded that the toxin was among a category of Soviet-era nerve agents called Novichok, though they could not yet determine whether it was made in Russia.

Moscow denies any involvement in the attack and accuses Britain of whipping up anti-Russian hysteria in the West.

The OPCW, which oversees the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention, has taken samples from the site of the Salisbury attack and is expected to provide results from testing next week.

Shulgin said earlier that if Moscow was prevented from taking part in the testing of the Salisbury toxin samples, it would reject the outcome of the OPCW research.

The EU said it was very concerned Moscow was considering rejecting the OPCW findings.

“It is imperative that the Russian Federation responds to the British government’s legitimate questions, begins to co-operate with the OPCW secretariat and provides full and complete disclosure to the OPCW of any programme with relevance to the case,” said an EU statement read to the council session.

The statement said that instead of co-operating with the OPCW, Russia had unleashed “a flood of insinuations targeting EU member states . . .This is completely unacceptable.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Russia’s foreign intelligence agency chief said the poisoning of Skripal was an act of provocation by US and British intelligence services.

“Even in the Skripal case, a grotesque provocation crudely concocted by US and British security services, some European governments are not following London and Washington blindly but are instead choosing to carefully make sense of what happened,” Sergei Naryshkin said.

Skripal remains in a critical but stable condition, while his daughter has shown signs of improvement.

Russia has said that a relative of the Skripals is planning to visit them in hospital.

A spokeswoman for the ministry of foreign affairs in Moscow said that Viktoria Skripal had been in contact with the Russian embassy in London and said she wanted to offer “moral and psychological support” to her relatives. </s> THE HAGUE – Russia’s call for a joint inquiry to be held into the poisoning of a former Russian double agent in England failed on Wednesday when it was outvoted 15-6 at a meeting of the global chemical weapons watchdog.

Russia had called an emergency meeting of the decision-making executive of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to counter accusations by Britain that it was behind the 4 March nerve agent poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, England.

UK’s security services believe they have pinpointed the location of Russian laboratory that manufactured the nerve agent Novichok used in Salisbury attack, The Times reported on Wednesday. Britain was aware of the existence of the site before 4 March, the report said.

It cited an unidentified security source as saying they have a “high degree of confidence in the location”.

Britain’s charges of Russian involvement, strongly denied by Moscow, have triggered mass expulsions of diplomats by both Britain’s allies in the West, including the United States, and similar retaliatory action by Russia.

When the meeting convened on Wednesday, Russia proposed a joint investigation into the poisoning as it was not invited to participate in an independent probe being carried out by the OPCW at Britain’s request, results of which are due next week.

Britain called the Russian proposal for a joint investigation a “perverse” attempt to escape blame for the poisoning of the Skripals, and part of a disinformation campaign mounted by Moscow.

Russia’s proposal in the end drew support from China, Azerbaijan, Sudan, Algeria and Iran, a source told Reuters, with US and European members voting against the plan. There were 17 abstentions among members of the organisation’s 41-member council, only 38 of whose members were present and eligible to vote on Wednesday.

Russia’s ambassador to the OPCW, Aleksander Shulgin, confirmed that the vote had been lost.

Separately on Wednesday, Russia requested a public meeting of the United Nations Security Council on 5 April to discuss the British accusations against Moscow, Russian UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said.

“Russia has had one goal in mind since the attempted murders on UK soil through the use of a military-grade chemical weapon - to obscure the truth and confuse the public,” he said in a statement.

“The international community has yet again seen through these tactics and robustly defeated Russia’s attempts today to derail the proper international process.”

The closed-door OPCW meeting itself triggered sharp verbal exchanges between the Britain and Russia’s representatives.

In a tweet, the British delegation called Moscow’s idea for a joint investigation “a diversionary tactic, and yet more disinformation designed to evade the questions the Russians authorities must answer”.

John Foggo, Britain’s acting envoy, said Russian assertions that the attack may have been carried out by Britain, the United States or Sweden were “shameless, preposterous statements”.

Shulgin, at a news conference, said the vote showed more than half of the OPCW’s members had “refused to associate themselves with the West’s point of view” - referring to those who voted in favour of Russia’s proposal or abstained.

He repeated that Russia had had nothing to do with the attack on the Skripals, which he said looked like “a terrorist attack.”

Britain’s remarks were “a dirty flow of complete lies ... outright Russia-phobia,” he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday the OPCW should draw a line under a case that has triggered the worst crisis in East-West relations since the Cold War.

Scientists at the Porton Down biological and chemical weapons laboratory in England have concluded that the toxin was among a category of Soviet-era nerve agents called Novichok, though could not yet determine whether it was made in Russia.

The OPCW, which oversees the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention, has taken samples from the site of the Salisbury attack and is expected to provide results from testing at two designated laboratories next week.

Shulgin said earlier that if Moscow was prevented from taking part in the testing of the Salisbury toxin samples, it would reject the outcome of the OPCW research.

Russia’s request to open a parallel, joint Russian-British inquiry has been portrayed by Western powers as an attempt to undermine the investigation by OPCW scientists.

The EU said it was very concerned Moscow was considering rejecting the OPCW findings.

Instead of cooperating with the OPCW, Russia had unleashed “a flood of insinuations targeting EU member states ... This is completely unacceptable,” an EU statement read to the council session said.

Skripal, 66, a former Russian military intelligence officer who betrayed scores of Russian agents to Britain and was exchanged in a Russia-West spy swap, remains in a critical but stable condition. His daughter, Yulia, 33, has shown signs of improvement </s> THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Russia’s proposal for a joint inquiry into the poisoning of a Russian ex-spy in England is “perverse”, Britain’s delegation at the global chemical weapons watchdog said on Wednesday as the agency began an emergency meeting requested by Moscow.

Moscow convened the session of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague to counter accusations by Britain that it was behind the March 4 poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with a military-grade nerve toxin in the English city of Salisbury.

In a tweet, the British delegation said Moscow’s request was “a diversionary tactic, and yet more disinformation designed to evade the questions the Russians authorities must answer”.

Scientists at the Porton Down biological and chemical weapons laboratory in England have concluded that the toxin was among a category of Soviet-era nerve agents called Novichok, though could not yet determine whether it was made in Russia.

Moscow denies any involvement in the attack and accuses London of whipping up anti-Russian hysteria in the West.

The OPCW, which oversees the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention, has taken samples from the site of the Salisbury attack and is expected to provide results from testing at two designated laboratories next week.

Russia’s envoy to the OPCW has said that if Moscow is prevented from taking part in the testing of the Salisbury toxin samples, it will reject the outcome of the OPCW research.

Diplomatic sources said, however, that Russia’s proposal for a second investigation was not expected to win the two-thirds majority needed for approval at the special session of the OPCW’s 41-member executive council, which is deeply divided.

Council members are elected by the OPCW’s 192 member states, which include major powers such as Russia, Britain and the United States, and take all its major decisions.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday he hoped the OPCW meeting would defuse a diplomatic uproar triggered by the poisoning of Skripal, who remains in critical but stable condition, while his daughter has shown signs of improvement.

The case has plunged East-West relations into their worst crisis since the 1945-90 Cold War, with Britain and its allies expelling around 130 Russian diplomats and Moscow responding with its own expulsions.

“We have raised 20 questions for discussion (at the meeting). I hope that during this discussion a final line on what has happened will be drawn,” Putin told a news conference during a visit to the Turkish capital Ankara.

Russia’s request to open a parallel, joint Russian-British inquiry is seen by Western powers as an attempt to undermine the ongoing investigation by OPCW technical experts.

Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Ankara that Britain’s version of who was responsible for the poisoning “will not be confirmed anyway because it is impossible to confirm it”. </s> Moscow’s call for a joint UK/Russian investigation into the Salisbury poisoning has been dismissed as “perverse” by Britain’s delegation to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

The move came as the OPCW’s executive council met in The Hague to discuss the attack on Sergei and Yulia Skripal at the request of Russia.

The Russian initiative was described by the Foreign Office as a “diversionary tactic” designed to undermine the OPCW’s work in analysing samples of the substance identified by the UK as a Novichok nerve agent.

Tension between Moscow and London has risen a notch after the head of the Porton Down military research facility said scientists had not verified Russia as the source of the substance.

Vladimir Putin seized on the comments from the chief executive of the Government’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), Gary Aitkenhead, as he accused the UK of launching an “anti-Russian campaign”.

And Labour’s Diane Abbott suggested the Government had rushed to blame the Russian president.

Russia has flatly denied UK claims that it was to blame for the March 4 attack, with foreign intelligence service director Sergei Naryshkin even claiming it was staged by the UK and US as a “provocation”.

Mr Naryshkin told a global security conference in Moscow: “Even as far as the Skripal case goes – which is a grotesque provocation rudely staged by the British and US intelligence agencies – some European countries are in no hurry to follow London and Washington, preferring to sort the situation out.”

Moscow continues to demand that Britain hands over samples of the substance so it can carry out its own checks.

But the UK OPCW delegation said in a tweet: “Russia’s proposal for a joint UK/Russian investigation into the Salisbury incident is perverse. It is a diversionary tactic, and yet more disinformation designed to evade the questions the Russian authorities must answer.”

And a Foreign Office spokesman said there was “no requirement in the chemical weapons convention for the victim of a chemical weapons attack to engage in a joint investigation with the likely perpetrator”.

The spokesman described Wednesday’s meeting in The Hague as “yet another diversionary tactic, intended to undermine the work of the OPCW in reaching a conclusion”.

He said: “Russia has called this meeting to undermine the work of the OPCW which, fully in accordance with the chemical weapons convention, is providing the UK with technical assistance and evaluation through independent analysis of samples from the Salisbury attack.”

Mr Aitkenhead said on Tuesday that Porton Down had identified the substance used in Salisbury as a military-grade Novichok nerve agent which could probably be deployed only by a nation-state.

But he told Sky News it was not the role of his lab to work out where the agent came from and said the Government’s conclusion that it was highly likely to be Russian was based on “a number of other sources”.

His comments appeared to contradict the answer given by Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson when asked on German TV on March 20 why the UK believed the source of the nerve agent was Russia.

“The people from Porton Down, the laboratory, they were absolutely categorical,” Mr Johnson said. “I asked them that myself. I said ‘Are you sure?’ He said ‘There’s no doubt’.”

And on March 22, the Foreign Office issued a tweet saying: “Analysis by world-leading experts at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory at Porton Down made clear that this was a military-grade Novichok nerve agent produced in Russia.”

Ms Abbott said the development raised questions about the Government’s approach, and said Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn should now be given credit for demanding more evidence before allocating blame.

“It doesn’t surprise me Porton Down is saying this because the security services were always very cautious in what they said,” the shadow home secretary told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“What surprised me was that so many were willing to rush into the media and say it was unequivocally Putin. That’s not necessarily what we were told.”

Ms Abbott acknowledged that Prime Minister Theresa May had been “quite careful” in her language, but added: “Boris Johnson apparently going on international media and saying he was 101% certain it was Putin – I don’t understand where he got that information from.”

During a visit to Turkey, Mr Putin called for a thorough investigation into the poisoningy, saying “the speed at which the anti-Russian campaign has been launched causes bewilderment”.

Following Mr Aitkenhead’s comments, a Government spokesman said ministers had always been clear that the identification of the substance as Novichok by the Porton Down experts was “only one part of the intelligence picture” leading to the assessment that Russian state involvement was the only plausible explanation for the attack.

But Russia’s EU ambassador, Vladimir Chizhov, insisted that the nerve agent “could have been manufactured anywhere”.

Russian news agency Tass quoted Mr Chizhov as saying he was “not surprised” by Mr Aitkenhead’s comments, as Novichok “is widely known – its formula is even available on the internet”. </s> Earlier today, Russian officials called an emergency meeting of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) at the Hague. Moscow said it wanted to "address allegations of non-compliance" with the chemical weapons convention made by the UK against Russia. Vladmir Putin's regime has repeatedly denied responsibility for the attack on former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury last month. On Twitter, the Russian embassy in the Netherlands listed the 13 other countries which apparently supported its joint statement to the OPCW.

The countries listed were Iran, Syria, Pakistan, Cuba, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Venezuela, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Nicaragua. But the UK Government accused Russia of attempting to undermine the OPCW, as well as engaging in "another diversionary tactic". It comes a day after the head of Porton Down said his scientists have not verified that the nerve agent used in Salisbury came from Russia. Taking aim at Russia, a Foreign Office spokesman said: "Russia has called this meeting to undermine the work of the OPCW. "Of course, there is no requirement in the chemical weapons convention for the victim of a chemical weapons attack to engage in a joint investigation with the likely perpetrator."

Today's meeting of the OPCW executive council at the Hague was held behind closed doors. Speaking during a visit to Turkey, Russian president Mr Putin called for a thorough investigation into the poisoning. In a furious broadside at the UK, he added: "The speed at which the anti-Russian campaign has been launched causes bewilderment." Theresa May successfully recruited international support in the dispute with Moscow following the shocking attack in Salisbury on April 4. It resulted in the expulsion of more than 100 Russian diplomats from more than 20 countries.

German politician Armin Laschet, an ally of Angela Merkel, said: "If one forces nearly all NATO countries into solidarity, shouldn't one have certain evidence? "Regardless of what one thinks about Russia, my study of international law taught me a different way to deal with other states." A Downing Street spokesman said: "As the Prime Minister has made clear, the UK would much rather have in Russia a constructive partner ready to play by the rules. "But this attack in Salisbury was part of a pattern of increasingly aggressive Russian behaviour, as well as a new and dangerous phase in Russian activity within the continent and beyond."

Shortly before the emergency meeting, Moscow claimed a relative of Sergei and Yulia Skripal is planning to visit the pair in hospital. A spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry in Moscow said that Viktoria Skripal had been in contact with the Russian Embassy in London. The spokeswoman added: "Viktoria Skripal plans to visit her relatives in the UK to provide moral and psychological support. "We consider this an absolutely natural and sincere desire, and especially important now, as Yulia Skripal's condition has reportedly improved." Ms Skripal is understood to be the niece of former spy Sergei, who remains in a critical condition at Salisbury District Hospital. </s> Russia’s has failed in a “ludicrous” bid for a joint inquiry into the Salisbury attack at a meeting of the global weapons watchdog.

Russia called an emergency meeting of the decision-making executive of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to counter accusations it was behind the nerve agent poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.

But it was outvoted by 15-6 in a vote in the Hague.

Boris Johnson branded the bid “ludicrous” and said Russia’s goal was to “obscure the truth and confuse the public.”

The Foreign Secretary, who is under pressure for wrongly claiming Porton Down scientists had pointed the finger at Russia for the attack, said countries around the world "continue to share our assessment" of the incident.

He said: "The purpose of Russia's ludicrous proposal at The Hague was clear - to undermine the independent, impartial work of the international chemical weapons watchdog.

"Russia has had one goal in mind since the attempted murders on UK soil through the use of a military-grade chemical weapon - to obscure the truth and confuse the public.

"The international community has yet again seen through these tactics and robustly defeated Russia's attempts today to derail the proper international process.

"It shows that many countries around the world continue to share our assessment of what happened in Salisbury and are determined to stand up to Russia's behaviour."

In a vote at OPCW, six of the 41 members backed Russia while 15 voted against, 17 abstained, two were absent, and one was not entitled to vote.

Nick Heath, deputy British ambassador to The Hague, said Russia had failed again in its attempts to "frustrate the process of justice".

Russian officials speaking after the meeting concluded said they had presented a "common sense" case and pointed to the "lies by Tony Blair " over Iraq as they criticised the intelligence about the attack.

Moscow has called for an emergency session of the UN Security Council on Thursday to discuss the case.

Only six of the 41 OPCW members voted in favour of the Russian draft decision proposing the joint UK/Russian investigation. 15 voted against, including the UK, 17 abstained, 2 were absent, and one was not entitled to vote.

UK ambassador John Foggo accused Russia of showing "disdain" for the independence of the international body, which is conducting tests on samples of the nerve agent used in the March 4 attack on ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.

He told the meeting: "The work of the Technical Secretariat must remain impartial.

"Russia's refusal to accept the results of the OPCW's investigation unless Russian experts participate in it suggests that Russia is opposed to the independence and impartiality of the Technical Secretariat and is nervous about what the results will show."

Russia has flatly denied UK claims that it was to blame for the March 4 attack, with foreign intelligence service director Sergei Naryshkin even claiming it was staged by the UK and US as a "provocation". </s> Russia has called an extraordinary meeting of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague to discuss the UK’s claim that Moscow was behind the attack.

The EU said it was “very concerned” Russia is considering rejecting the findings of the body.

Yesterday UK experts said they could not prove that Russian agents poisoned Sergei and Yulia Skripal.

The union also said that it is “imperative” that Russia co-operate with the chemical weapons watchdog to find out who carried out the first known attack with nerve agent since the end of the Second World War.

Scientists at the Porton Down military research facility haven’t been able to establish exactly where the novichok nerve agent was manufactured, however the German government said that “nothing has changed” regarding their position of support toward the UK. </s> Earlier today, Russian officials called an emergency meeting of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) at the Hague. Moscow said it wanted to "address allegations of non-compliance" with the chemical weapons convention made by the UK against Russia. Vladmir Putin's regime has repeatedly denied responsibility for the attack on former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury last month. On Twitter, the Russian embassy in the Netherlands listed the 13 other countries which apparently supported its joint statement to the OPCW.

The countries listed were Iran, Syria, Pakistan, Cuba, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Venezuela, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Nicaragua. But the UK Government accused Russia of attempting to undermine the OPCW, as well as engaging in "another diversionary tactic". It comes a day after the head of Porton Down said his scientists have not verified that the nerve agent used in Salisbury came from Russia. Taking aim at Russia, a Foreign Office spokesman said: "Russia has called this meeting to undermine the work of the OPCW. "Of course, there is no requirement in the chemical weapons convention for the victim of a chemical weapons attack to engage in a joint investigation with the likely perpetrator."

Today's meeting of the OPCW executive council at the Hague was held behind closed doors. Speaking during a visit to Turkey, Russian president Mr Putin called for a thorough investigation into the poisoning. In a furious broadside at the UK, he added: "The speed at which the anti-Russian campaign has been launched causes bewilderment." Theresa May successfully recruited international support in the dispute with Moscow following the shocking attack in Salisbury on April 4. It resulted in the expulsion of more than 100 Russian diplomats from more than 20 countries.

German politician Armin Laschet, an ally of Angela Merkel, said: "If one forces nearly all NATO countries into solidarity, shouldn't one have certain evidence? "Regardless of what one thinks about Russia, my study of international law taught me a different way to deal with other states." A Downing Street spokesman said: "As the Prime Minister has made clear, the UK would much rather have in Russia a constructive partner ready to play by the rules. "But this attack in Salisbury was part of a pattern of increasingly aggressive Russian behaviour, as well as a new and dangerous phase in Russian activity within the continent and beyond." </s> THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Russia’s call for a joint inquiry to be held into the poisoning of a former Russian double agent in England failed on Wednesday when it was outvoted 15-6 at a meeting of the global chemical weapons watchdog.

Russia had called an emergency meeting of the decision-making executive of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to counter accusations by Britain that it was behind the March 4 nerve agent poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, England.

Britain’s charges of Russian involvement, strongly denied by Moscow, have triggered mass expulsions of diplomats by both Britain’s allies in the West, including the United States, and similar retaliatory action by Russia.

When the meeting convened on Wednesday, Russia proposed a joint investigation into the poisoning as it was not invited to participate in an independent probe being carried out by the OPCW at Britain’s request, results of which are due next week.

Britain called the Russian proposal for a joint investigation a “perverse” attempt to escape blame for the poisoning of the Skripals, and part of a disinformation campaign mounted by Moscow.

Russia’s proposal in the end drew support from China, Azerbaijan, Sudan, Algeria and Iran, a source told Reuters, with U.S. and European members voting against the plan. There were 17 abstentions among members of the organisation’s 41-member council, only 38 of whose members were present and eligible to vote on Wednesday.

Russia’s ambassador to the OPCW, Aleksander Shulgin, confirmed that the vote had been lost.

Separately on Wednesday Russia requested a public meeting of the United Nations Security Council on April 5 to discuss the British accusations against Moscow, Russian U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said.

“Russia has had one goal in mind since the attempted murders on UK soil through the use of a military-grade chemical weapon — to obscure the truth and confuse the public,” he said in a statement.

“The international community has yet again seen through these tactics and robustly defeated Russia’s attempts today to derail the proper international process.”

The closed-door OPCW meeting itself triggered sharp verbal exchanges between the Britain and Russia’s representatives.

In a tweet, the British delegation called Moscow’s idea for a joint investigation “a diversionary tactic, and yet more disinformation designed to evade the questions the Russians authorities must answer”.

John Foggo, Britain’s acting envoy, said Russian assertions that the attack may have been carried out by Britain, the United States or Sweden were “shameless, preposterous statements...

Shulgin, at a news conference, said the vote showed more than half of the OPCW’s members had “refused to associate themselves with the West’s point of view” — referring to those who voted in favour of Russia’s proposal or abstained.

He repeated that Russia had had nothing to do with the attack on the Skripals, which he said looked like “a terrorist attack.”

Britain’s remarks were “a dirty flow of complete lies ... outright Russia-phobia,” he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday the OPCW should draw a line under a case that has triggered the worst crisis in East-West relations since the Cold War.

Scientists at the Porton Down biological and chemical weapons laboratory in England have concluded that the toxin was among a category of Soviet-era nerve agents called Novichok, though could not yet determine whether it was made in Russia.

The OPCW, which oversees the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention, has taken samples from the site of the Salisbury attack and is expected to provide results from testing at two designated laboratories next week.

Shulgin said earlier that if Moscow was prevented from taking part in the testing of the Salisbury toxin samples, it would reject the outcome of the OPCW research.

Russia’s request to open a parallel, joint Russian-British inquiry has been portrayed by Western powers as an attempt to undermine the investigation by OPCW scientists.

The EU said it was very concerned Moscow was considering rejecting the OPCW findings.

Instead of cooperating with the OPCW, Russia had unleashed “a flood of insinuations targeting EU member states ... This is completely unacceptable,” an EU statement read to the council session said.

Skripal, 66, a former Russian military intelligence officer who betrayed scores of Russian agents to Britain and was exchanged in a Russia-West spy swap, remains in a critical but stable condition. His daughter, Yulia, 33, has shown signs of improvement.
The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons rejects a Russian request for a joint investigation.