And it is right that here in the EU Council we are standing together to uphold those values.”

European Union leaders backed Britain on Thursday in blaming Moscow over a nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy in England and recalled their envoy to Moscow in a symbolic protest. In a boost to Prime Minister Theresa May, European Union leaders agreed with Britain’s assessment “that it is highly likely that the Russian Federation is responsible and that there is no plausible alternative explanation.”

A London court gave permission for blood samples to be taken from the Skripals for examination by chemical weapons inspectors to confirm the conclusion of Britain’s Porton Down military research laboratory. “What we’ll now consider in the coming days is to whether we want to take individual action relating to Russian diplomats in Ireland”, the Taoiseach told reporters. “It’s clear that the Russian threat does not respect borders and indeed the incident in Salisbury was a pattern of Russian aggression against Europe and its near neighbours.”

May accused Russia of the first known offensive use of a nerve toxin in Europe since World War Two after Sergei Skripal, a former Russian double agent, and his daughter were found unconscious on a public bench in the English city on 4 March. In the worst crisis between the two powers since the Cold War, May has expelled 23 Russian diplomats whom she says were spies working under cover. Russia has repeatedly denied any involvement in the attack, calling the charges against it "crazy allegations." Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite said she was already considering expelling Russian spies from her territory. “I welcome the fact that the EU Council has agreed with the UK government’s assessment that it is highly likely that Russia was responsible for the attempted murder that took place on the streets of Salisbury, and that there is no plausible alternative explanation,” May told reporters.
The European Union agrees with the United Kingdom's assessment of the incident, stating that "there is no plausible alternative explanation" to Russian involvement.