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Russian ambassadors to Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia mysteriously summoned to foreign ministries amid diplomatic spat

Meetings come after EU agreed Kremlin 'was 'likely' responsible for the attack on Sergei Skripal

Monday 26 March 2018 11:43 BST

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Russian diplomats move out of UK embassy following expulsion over Salisbury spy poisoning

The Russian ambassadors to Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have been summoned to the foreign ministries of those countries, according to Russian media.

The RIA news agency cited a spokesman for the Russian embassy to Poland, and a representative of the embassy in Lithuania. TASS referred to unnamed diplomatic sources. The agencies did not give a reason for the summoning.

All four countries are members of the EU. The bloc recently recalled its ambassador to Moscow “for consultations” in the wake of the Sergei Skripal poisoning, after EU leaders said there was “no plausible alternative explanation” for the use of novichok nerve agent in Salisbury other than its deployment by the Russian government.

Along with Ireland and France, the four were thought to be considering the expulsion of Russian diplomats.

The Kremlin has denied any involvement in the attack earlier this month, which also left a police officer seriously ill and forced a number of other bystanders to seek treatment.

Last week in a joint statement, the European Council said it “agrees with the UK government’s assessment that it is highly likely that the Russian Federation is responsible”.

“Member states will coordinate on the consequences to be drawn in the light of the answers provided by the Russian authorities. The European Union will remain closely focused on this issue and its implications,” it added.

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

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1/15Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Scene of attack

Members of the emergency services in hazard suits fix the tent over the bench where Sergei and Yulia Skripal were found unconscious on a park bench in Salisbury in March 2018.

Getty

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Victim - Sergei Skripal

The retired Russian colonel and former double agent for MI6 was in a critical condition in hospital for more than two months after being exposed to novichok in Salisbury. He was given refuge in the UK after being jailed in Moscow for treason. Mr Skripal came to Britain as part of a high-profile “spy swap” in 2010 in which four men were exchanged for ten Russian "sleeper agents" in the US. In this image he is speaking to his lawyer from behind bars in Moscow in 2006.

AP

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Victim - Yulia Skripal

Yulia Skripal was struck down by a novichok poison alongside her father Sergei.

Facebook

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Scene of attack

A police officer stands guard outside a branch of the Italian chain restaurant Zizzi where the pair dined at before falling ill. It was boarded off whilst investigators worked on the building and later found traces of the chemical weapon within it.

AFP/Getty

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Scene of attack

Large areas of central Salisbury were cordoned off by police following the discovery of the Skripals. Traces of nerve agent were also found in The Mill pub.

PA

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Victim - Nick Bailey

Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey, rushed to the aid of the Russian ex-spy and his daughter who were targeted with a nerve agent. He was hospitalized after aiding them and didn't leave until three weeks after the attack.

Wiltshire Police/Rex

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Police investigation - Skripal’s home

Police believe they were poisoned at home, and detectives found the highest concentration of novichok on the front door of Mr Skripal’s house.

Getty

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Theresa May visits scene of attack

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May spokes with Wiltshire Police's Chief Constable Kier Pritchard near where the Skripal's were found. Britain expelled 23 Russian diplomats over the nerve agent poisoning and suspended high-level contacts, including for the World Cup on March 14. Theresa May told parliament that Russia had failed to respond to her demand for an explanation on how a Soviet-designed chemical, Novichok, was used in Salisbury.

AFP/Getty

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Skripal days before attack

Sergei Skripal days before he was exposed to Novichok, that has left him fighting for life.

ITV News

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Police investigation - military involvement

British soldiers were deployed soon after the attack to help a counter-terrorism investigation into the nerve agent attack. One of the places they were asked to help out with was Skripal's home and it's surrounding. They were asked to remove a vehicle connected to the agent attack in Salisbury, from a residential street in Gillingham.

AFP/Getty

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Police investigation

Personnel in protective coveralls and breathing equipment cover an ambulance with a tarpaulin at the Salisbury District Hospital.

AFP/Getty

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Police investigation

The investigation extended to the grave of Sergei Skripal's son Alexander in London Road cemetery.

Getty

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Police investigation

The Counter Terrorism Policing Network requested assistance from the military to remove a number of vehicles and objects from Salisbury.

EPA

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Home Secretary visits scene of attack

Home Secretary Amber Rudd visited the scene of the nerve agent attack at the Maltings shopping centre on 9 March.

Getty

Skripal attack aftermath – in pictures

Yulia Skripal speaks for the first time

Yulia Skripal, speaking for the first time, said she felt lucky to have survived the nerve agent attack in Salisbury which left her fighting for life. Ms Skripal said her life had been “turned upside down” by the assassination attempt. But the Russian national added she hoped to return to her homeland one day, despite the Kremlin being blamed for the attack.

Reuters

Theresa May’s spokesman said on Monday morning that other countries’ actions towards Russia following the attack were a matter for them, but welcomed the support shown at last week’s summit.

The UK has expelled a number of Russian diplomats. A plane carrying more than 20 diplomats and their families left Stansted last week after Ms May said they were “undeclared intelligence officers”.

Additional reporting by agencies

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