US admitted taking action against Russia after the report of Litvinenko – RBC

A former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko

Photo: AP

United States does not rule out the possibility of taking action against Russia after the publication in the United Kingdom report on the case of the death of former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko, said at a briefing, White House spokesman Josh Ernest.

«In the situation with the case anxiety, which expressed the British government, of course, because the incident occurred on British soil. And it will make sense if some specific action will be taken [the British authorities] to respond to these concerns, “- said Ernest.

«I will not make announcements about our response to the findings [in the case of Litvinenko]. But I would not rule out the relevant steps in the future “, – said the White House spokesman, adding that for the adoption of these measures, the US authorities need to be more careful study of the report on the case.

Ernest also said that” the political situation “that currently exists in Russia,” applies – at least in some cases – of the Russian borders. ” “Inside Russia, as we have seen, critics and political opponents of the Russian government are often subjected to threats and in some cases killings” – said the White House spokesman.

Earlier, the Prime Minister announced that the country toughens measures against Russia in connection with the report on the Litvinenko case.

«This report confirms what we have always believed, and that, in what believed the last Labour government at the time of this terrible murder – that this action It was supported by the [Russian] state. And this is the reason why the government has taken steps recently, expelling Russian diplomats issued a warrant for the arrest of [Kovtun and Lugovoi] and refusing to cooperate with the Russian special services. And those measures are supplemented by the fact that we duly added today – further freezing of accounts [Kovtun and Lugovoi], an appeal to the prosecutor’s office about what else can be done. We must now fully explore the report and take everything on the note. But make no mistake: this shocking event, which was given the reaction of years ago, when it happened, we toughen our actions now, “- said Cameron.

Earlier Thursday, Judge Robert Owen presented a report on the results of public hearing about the death of former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko. He said that Litvinenko had been poisoned deliberately, Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun. Owen also said that on the basis of the available data, he concluded that the murder of Litvinenko was probably approved by Russian President Vladimir Putin and the former head of the FSB, Nikolai Patrushev.

Mentioned in the report the State Duma deputy Lugovoi and businessman Kovtun rejected charges Litvinenko’s murder. The first called them absurd, the second – based on fabricated evidence. The Russian Foreign Ministry and the Kremlin also rejected the suspicion of involvement in the murder of Moscow.