Nato joins two dozen nations in Russian expulsions over spy attack
The UK foreign secretary says the expulsions are ‘a blow from which Russian intelligence will need many years to recover’, while local media label it a 'Russophobic flashmob'
London — Defence alliance Nato joined two dozen governments around the world on Tuesday in expelling Russian diplomats in response to a nerve-agent attack in Britain, marking what London called a "turning point" in the West’s relations with Moscow. The US-led military alliance expelled seven Russian staff and denied accreditation to three more, bringing the total number of suspected Russian spies expelled to almost 150, including the 23 initially dispatched by Britain. "This will send a clear message to Russia that there are costs and consequences for their unacceptable pattern of behaviour," Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said in Brussels. In an unprecedented act of co-ordination, at least 24 countries have echoed Britain’s action in response to the March 4 attack on former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter in the English city of Salisbury. London and its allies have blamed Moscow, citing the use of a Soviet-designed nerve agent Novichok, Russia’s record of targetin...
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