British FM: Russian denial absurd

(With POL-EU-FMS-MOGHERINI) BRUSSELS, March 19 (KUNA) -- UK Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Boris Johnson, expressed his thanks Monday for the European support to the UK regarding the Salisbury incident, saying "the strength and the resolve of our European friends is so striking today." Speaking to reporters ahead of an EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels, he announced that today the technical experts from the Organisation of the Prevention of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) will be arriving in the UK to take the samples from Salisbury.
"The Russian denials grow increasingly absurd. This is a classic Russian strategy of trying to conceal the needle of truth in a haystack," said Johnson.
He noted that 12 years after the assassination of the former Russian spy in London Alexander Litvinenko "they are not fooling anybody anymore.
"There is scarcely a country here around the table in Brussels which has not been affected in recent years by some kind of malign and disruptive Russian behaviour," he added.
On his part, the new German foreign minister Heiko Maas, said "all information suggests the involvement of the Russian side. We stand by our British colleagues and this is what I will tell them today," he said and noted that the election result in Russia was not really a surprise.
"We can by no means talk about a political contest in the same terms as he is used to. The fact that elections took also place in the illegally annexed from an international law point of view region of Crimea is not acceptable. All this confirms that Russia remains a difficult partner, but it will be needed for the solution of major international conflicts and this is why we want to remain in dialogue," Maas said.
On Syria, he said, "we must realise that after seven years of conflict there are still fundamental human rights violations, there has been no improvement and those who support the regime must ask their selves to what extent they share the responsibility of what is happening on the ground." The ministers will also discuss today the nuclear deal with Iran, about which "we are convinced and interested that it is implemented completely," he said.
"We are in consultations with colleagues in France, Great Britain and the United States and will do everything we can so that this agreement is implemented," added Maas.
Jean-Yves Le Drian, French Foreign Minister, said, "this meeting is very important because there are a lot of grave issues on the agenda." He expressed the total unity of the Europeans and solidarity with Great Britain.
"We share the analysis made by the British according to which there is no other explanations than Russian intervention," he said.
On Iran's nuclear deal, he said, "we are determined to implement the Vienna agreement. We need to be strong on that regard and in the same time we need to cope with the responsibility of Iran in the region, which has a disputable role in the Middle East.
"This must be the subject of discussions among us today to agree on a common statement," he said.
On Syria, the French top diplomat called for the implementation of UNSC resolution 2401.
"We need to say it loud and act for all the parties to respect the agreement to avoid a new tragedy in Syria. It also means we have to mobilise humanitarian resources," he added. (end) nk.hb