Global Geopolitical Series: OPCW laboratory chief couldn’t confirm Russia’s involvement in Skripal poisoning

Scientists, working at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons’ (OPCW) approved laboratory (Porton Down) in the United Kingdom couldn’t confirm that the chemical agent Novichok, which was used in the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, who worked as a double agent for the United Kingdom and his daughter Yulia actually originated in Russia, which is sharp contrast to the claims made by the UK government over the past several weeks that insisted involvement of Russian government.

Gary Aitkenhead, chief executive of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) at Porton Down, told Sky News, "We were able to identify it as novichok, to identify that it was military-grade nerve agent….We have not identified the precise source, but we have provided the scientific info to government who have then used a number of other sources to piece together the conclusions you have come to…… We were able to identify it as novichok, to identify that it was military-grade nerve agent…….We have not identified the precise source, but we have provided the scientific info to government who have then used a number of other sources to piece together the conclusions you have come to……it is our job to provide the scientific evidence of what this particular nerve agent is, we identified that it is from this particular family [Novichok] and that it is a military grade, but it is not our job to say where it was manufactured."

This puts the UK government between a rock and hard place as Russia, along with other countries would certainly demand proof on how the UK government could identify the substance as Novichok so quickly and how it is sure that the source of the poison was Russia.