2018-10-02T19:44:00+03:00 Politics 2024-05-15T09:54:01+03:00

Ukrainian news

Interior Ministry: Russian GRU Officer Accused Of Poisoning Skripal Helped Yanukovych Flee Ukraine In 2014

Interior Ministry: Russian GRU Officer Accused Of Poisoning Skripal Helped Yanukovych Flee Ukraine In 2014

The Russian GRU military intelligence officer accused of poisoning former Russian intelligence officer Sergei Skripal in Salisbury (Britain) has been identified as one of the people that helped former president Viktor Yanukovych flee Ukraine in 2014.

The press service of the Ministry of Interior Affairs announced this in a statement, the Ukrainian News Agency reports.

According to the statement, Interior Affairs Minister Arsen Avakov held a meeting with Britain’s Minister of State for Security Ben Wallace on Tuesday.

"Interior Affairs Minister Arsen Avakov said that Ukraine has identified one of the participants in the attack in Salisbury as one of the Russian GRU officers that helped fugitive former president Yanukovych flee Ukraine," the statement said.

Wallace expressed appreciation for the fruitful cooperation between British and Ukrainian law enforcement officers.

According to earlier the media reports, GRU Colonel Anatoly Chepiga (Ruslan Boshirov), who is accused of poisoning Skripal, was probably involved in the extraction of Yanukovych from Ukraine to the Russian Federation in February 2014.

He was allegedly awarded the title of "Hero of Russia" for his participation in this operation.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, President Petro Poroshenko believes that the conclusions of experts in the case involving the poisoning of Skripal confirmed the criminal nature of Russia.