After the “nerve agent” crisis between the UK and Russia more than 20 countries decided to expel Russian diplomats. The EU countries and beyond joined Britain in blaming Russia for the attempted assassination on March 4, which was the first offensive use of nerve agent in Europe since World War II, despite the official Kremlin has repeatedly denied their involvement.
Political-analyst and commentator Oleg Varfolomeyev stated for Eurasia Diary that the chemical weapons are a very serious security threat and for that reason the scale of the response is not surprising, especially given Russia's strange reaction to the accusations.
There are perhaps also other factors in play. Some countries, such as the US and Ukraine, used the opportunity to send home more Russian spies.
Furthermore, EU members showed solidarity with the UK, especially in view of Brexit, perhaps trying to show the UK another example that it's better to be inside the club than on its own.
Oleg said that it is expected more EU countries are likely to join to show unity. This will be a difficult dilemma though for certain EU members and aspirants that are softer on the Putin regime, such as Cyprus, Greece or Serbia.
Political-analyst considers that this won't affect Putin's belligerent policies. For him and his worshippers at home, with their Stalinist mindset, the more enemies the better. But generally, Russia is getting more isolated. In the long run, this is affecting the economy and national prestige.
Today Australian FM also stated for the media about boycotting the World Cup 2018. One by one, Western countries are announcing boycott. One of the most recent announcements came from Iceland. Of course, this tension is no good for global security and stability, but this is one of the ways to show Moscow that it should change its behaviour.
Here are all the countries that have expelled Russian officials over the "nerve agent" crisis:
The UK — 23 diplomats expelled
United States — 60
Albania — 2
Australia — 2
Canada — 4
Croatia — 1
Czech Republic — 3
Denmark — 2
Estonia — 1
Finland — 1
France — 4
Germany — 4
Ireland — 1
Italy — 2
Latvia — 1
Lithuania — 3
Netherlands — 2
Norway — 1
Poland — 4
Romania — 1
Ukraine — 13
Spain — 2
Sweden — 1
The total figure is 138.
Farid Hasanov
