Trump expelling 60 Russian diplomats in wake of UK nerve agent attack
Trump expels 60 Russian diplomats over UK attack 00:50
Washington (CNN)The
United States, European Union countries, Canada and Ukraine expelled
more than 100 Russian diplomats on Monday in response to Russia's
alleged use of a nerve agent to poison a former Russian spy living in
the United Kingdom.
President
Donald Trump on Monday ordered the expulsion of 60 Russian diplomats
the US identified as intelligence agents and the closure of the Russian
consulate in Seattle, the most forceful action Trump has taken against
Russia to date. Of those being expelled, 48 of the alleged intelligence
agents work at the Russian embassy in Washington and 12 are posted at
the United Nations in New York, senior administration officials said.
Russia
and the United Kingdom have been embroiled in a bitter diplomatic fight
since Russian former double agent Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter,
33-year-old Yulia Skripal, were poisoned in the English cathedral city
of Salisbury on March 4.
British
Prime Minister Theresa May called the broad move "the largest
collective expulsion of Russian intelligence officers in history."
"We
have no disagreement with the Russian people who have achieved so much
through their country's great history. But President Putin's regime is
carrying out acts of aggression against our shared values," she said
Monday. "The United Kingdom will stand shoulder to shoulder with the EU
and NATO to face down these threats."
During a debate in the UK parliament on national security and Russia, May gave new details on the Skripal case.
"While
Public Health England have made clear that the risk to public health is
low and this remains the case, we assess that more than 130 people in
Salisbury could have been potentially exposed to this nerve agent," she
said, adding that more than 50 people were assessed in hospital.
"Sergei
and Yulia Skripal remain critically ill in hospital. Sadly, late last
week doctors indicated their condition is unlikely to change in the near
future and they may never recover fully. This shows the utterly
barbaric nature of this act and the dangers that hundreds of innocent
citizens in Salisbury could have faced."
Trump takes action
Where and when did nerve agent attack happen? 02:09
Trump
took the action after the US joined the United Kingdom in accusing
Russia of attempting earlier this month to murder a former Russian
double agent and his daughter using a nerve agent in the town of
Salisbury, England. The action comes just 11 days after the Trump
administration leveled the first sanctions against Russia for its
interference in the 2016 US presidential election.
"The
United States takes this action in conjunction with our NATO allies and
partners around the world in response to Russia's use of a
military-grade chemical weapon on the soil of the United Kingdom, the
latest in its ongoing pattern of destabilizing activities around the
world," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement.
"Today's
actions make the United States safer by reducing Russia's ability to
spy on Americans and to conduct covert operations that threaten
America's national security. With these steps, the United States and our
allies and partners make clear to Russia that its actions have
consequences," she said. "The United States stands ready to cooperate to
build a better relationship with Russia, but this can only happen with a
change in the Russian government's behavior."
Sanders
also added that the closure of the Russian consulate in Seattle was
tied to the consulate's "proximity to one of our submarine bases and
Boeing." A senior administration official declined to say whether the US
believes Russian agents were spying on US submarine bases.
The
consulate closure and the expulsion of dozens of diplomats came on the
heels of the UK's expulsion of 23 Russian diplomats. Fourteen European
Union member states, Canada and Ukraine also moved on Monday to expel
Russian diplomats.
Global response
Russia hits back at UK, expelling 23 diplomats 01:12
Ukraine
expelled 13 Russian diplomats over the incident. Canada, Germany,
France and Poland each expelled four Russian diplomats. Italy, Estonia,
the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Romania and Finland also
expelled between one and three diplomats each.
"Additional
measures, including further expulsions ... are not to be excluded in
the coming days and weeks," European Council President Donald Tusk said
Monday, speaking in Bulgaria.
He
said the European Council agreed with the UK "that it is highly likely
the Russian Federation is responsible" for the poisoning.
"We remain critical of the actions of the Russian government," Tusk added.
Senior
Trump administration officials said the actions were being taken not
only as a direct response to that attack, but also to rebuke Russia's
"steady drumbeat of destabilizing actions."
The
actions came less than a week after Trump spoke with Russian President
Vladimir Putin to congratulate him on his reelection. Trump did not
raise the nerve agent attack during the call, and senior administration
officials said the two leaders have not spoken since.
But
a senior administration official said the United States' retaliatory
action was "absolutely" Trump's decision, saying it was "something he
was involved in from the beginning and that he personally made after
several meetings with his team last week."
White
House deputy press secretary Raj Shah declined to say Monday why Trump
did not confront Putin about the attack during their call, saying only
that they discussed "a range of issues" and that Trump secured "some
positive interaction when it comes to nuclear arms."
"The President has made his position and the country's position pretty clear," Shah said, pointing to Monday's expulsions.
The
expulsion still leaves dozens of Russian intelligence officers working
under diplomatic cover in the US. A senior administration official said
the US estimates more than 100 Russian intelligence officers are
currently in the US.
Russia said
earlier on Monday it planned to retaliate against the US if its
diplomats were expelled, with a Kremlin spokesman saying "the principle
of reciprocity will be enforced" before the US announced its plans to
expel Russians.
The move comes
about 15 months after the Obama administration expelled 35 Russian
diplomats in response to Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential
election.
