Kremlin denies poisoned Russian double agent Sergei Skripal wrote to Vladimir Putin for pardon

Russian authorities have continued to deny British claims
EPA
Martin Coulter24 March 2018
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

The Kremlin has denied a claim that poisoned former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal wrote to Vladimir Putin asking to be pardoned and to be able to visit his home country.

The former Russian intelligence officer, who came to Britain in 2010 as part of a spy swap, regretted being a double agent and wanted to visit his family, his friend Vladimir Timoshkov told the BBC.

Mr Skripal and his daughter Yulia remain in a critical condition after they were poisoned with the highly lethal nerve agent Novichok in Salisbury on March 4.

Moscow has stepped up its campaign to discredit Theresa May's assertion that it is "highly likely" Russia was responsible for the attack.

Double agent: Sergei Skripal was found unconscious in Salisbury, where he had been living a quiet retirement

The diplomatic crisis has plunged relations between Russia and the UK into the deep freeze and could trigger further action by European Union members in support of the Prime Minister's stance.

But the Russian embassy in London kept up its attempts to challenge the UK's case - reiterating its suggestion that the Porton Down defence laboratory was developing its own "military-grade poisons".

Russian Spy Sergei Skripal: Salisbury Nerve Agent Incident

1/14

The lab, located less than 10 miles from Salisbury, is where tests were carried out to identify the Novichok substance.

Porton Down chief executive Gary Aitkenhead told the BBC: "We have got the highest levels of controls, of security around the work that we do here.

"We would not be allowed to operate if we had lack of control that could result in anything leaving the four walls of our facility here."

A Russian embassy spokesman said Mr Aitkenhead's comment "amounts to admitting that the secret facility is a place where new components of military-grade poisons are being researched and developed".

On Friday, EU leaders promised an "unprecedented" diplomatic response to the attack after backing Theresa May's assertion that Moscow was responsible.

The bloc is recalling its ambassador to Russia for "consultations" on the Salisbury attack.

Russia has vehemently denied any responsibility for the incident, while on Sunday Vladimir Chizhov, Russia's EU ambassador, said that "from the legal point of view the Russian state had nothing against [Mr Skripal]".

The 66-year-old was accused of working for MI6 over several years, in particular disclosing the names of several dozen Russian agents working in Europe.

He was sentenced to 13 years in a high-security prison in August 2006, before being freed in the 2010 deal which saw 10 Russian sleeper agents expelled from the United States.

Traces of the nerve agent used to poison Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found at Zizzi in Salisbury
PA

According to Mr Timoshkov, his friend, who he had known since school, did not see himself as a traitor as he had sworn an oath to the Soviet Union.

"Many people shunned him. His classmates felt he had betrayed the Motherland," he said.

"In 2012 he called me. We spoke for about half an hour. He called me from London. He denied he was a traitor... (he told me) he wrote to Vladimir Putin asking to be fully pardoned and to be allowed to visit Russia. His mother, brother and other relatives were (in Russia)."

Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey, who fell ill after responding to the Salisbury spy attack, has been discharged from hospital
PA

Russia's ambassador to the UK sent his well wishes to Mr Skripal and his daughter on Friday, saying he hoped for their recovery.

Alexander Yakovenko wrote to Wiltshire Police detective sergeant Nick Bailey, who was left seriously ill after he was exposed to the poison as he went to the Skripals' aid.

Mr Bailey said his experience had been "completely surreal" after he was discharged from hospital.

Additional reporting by the Press Association

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in