UK 'In Full Support' Of Czech Allies Hunting Salisbury Suspects

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has said the UK "stands in full support of our Czech allies" after authorities in the country said they were hunting two men whose passports match the names of the suspects in the Salisbury Novichok attack.

On Saturday, Czech police published photos of two foreign citizens who visited the country in 2014 and asked the public for any information about them.

The two were using Russian passports and were identified as Alexander Petrov, 41, and Ruslan Boshirov, 43.

Both men are wanted by police in the UK after the Crown Prosecution Service authorised charges against them in connection with the attempted killing of Sergei Skripal in Salisbury on 4 March 2018.

The military's Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Task Force cleared and decontaminated the areas affected, removing the deadly Novichok nerve agent from Salisbury and Amesbury following the attempted assassination.

The Czech Republic also said it was expelling 18 Russian diplomats who it had identified as spies in a case related to a huge ammunition depot explosion in the town of Vrbetice in 2014.

Mr Raab said: "The UK stands in full support of our Czech allies, who have exposed the lengths that the Russian intelligence services will go to in their attempts to conduct dangerous and malign operations in Europe.

"This shows a pattern of behaviour by Moscow, following the Novichok attack in Salisbury. My sympathies are with the families of the victims in Vrbetice.

"We are as determined and committed as ever to bring those responsible for the attack in Salisbury to justice, and commend the actions of the Czech authorities to do the same. Russia must desist from these actions, which violate the most basic international norms."

Cover image: Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab in 2020 (Picture: PA).