Bulgarian Foreign Minister backs UK steps against Russia over nerve agent attack on Skripal
Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva has expressed support for the United Kingdom following British Prime Minister Theresa May’s announcement of steps against Russia over the nerve agent attack on former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia.
“Bulgaria stays with its ally #UK. The use of any toxic chemicals is unlawful and should be condemned in the strongest possible way,” Zaharieva said in a message on Twitter on March 15.
In the tweet, Zaharieva tagged her British counterpart, Boris Johnson.
The Voice of America reported that May announced the retaliation to a packed House of Commons. She said her government will draft legislation to protect Britain from hostile state activity and will consider new anti-espionage measures.
Her reprisals include: adopting Magnitsky-type amendments to sanctions legislation allowing it to freeze assets of Russians deemed to be human rights abusers, and suspending all high-level contacts between Britain and Russian, including a planned visit by Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov.
Russia must co-operate in an investigation into the nerve agent used against the ex-spy on UK soil, Germany’s defence minister said on March 15, Deutsche Welle reported.
The nerve agent attack was a “serious violation of international agreements on chemical weapons,” Ursula von der Leyen told Morgen Magazin, a joint breakfast show by public broadcasters ARD and ZDF.
