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Speaker Ryan said White House was right to expel Russians
House Speaker Paul Ryan—Photo by Joseph Earnest
by Joseph Earnest March 26, 2018
Newscast Media PRAGUE—The Speaker of the House of Representatives said President Donald Trump made the "right call" in deciding to expel dozens of Russian diplomats in response to the poisoning of a Russian ex-spy on British soil.
Ryan made the comments in a March 26 interview with RFE/RL in Prague less than an hour after the White House announced the expulsion of 60 Russian "intelligence officers" and the closure of Russia's consulate in Seattle.
Numerous EU member states, Canada, and Ukraine almost simultaneously also announced expulsions of Russian diplomats in response to the poisoning of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter, who remain in critical condition in Britain.
"I think it was the right call. This is done in solidarity with our allies in Britain. I think it's fantastic that other European nations, including the Czech Republic right here, followed suit as well," Ryan said of the U.S. action.
"I think it was an entirely appropriate action to take," added Ryan, who met with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis on March 26.
Sergei and Yulia Skripal were discovered unconscious on a bench in the southern English town of Salisbury on March 4. Britain says they were poisoned with a military-grade nerve agent and, along with its allies, has blamed Russia.
The Kremlin denies involvement and has suggested that the United States, Britain, or other countries could have been the source of the toxin. It said Russia would be "guided by the principle of reciprocity" in response to the expulsions announced on March 26.
Asked whether it was premature to expel Russian diplomats given that the ongoing British investigation into the poisoning—and evidence that nerve agents were sold on the black market in Russia in the 1990s—Ryan told Radio Free Europe that "the evidence is fairly clear in this particular case."
"I think the British have made their case pretty clear," he added. "And this is something that Russia has been doing, and this is something that we think that Russia has done. This should not be tolerated. This is not something that civil nations do." Add Comments >>
Source: Radio Free Europe
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