Thank God Sergei Skripal recovered... if we poisoned him he'd have died on the spot! Putin taunts Britain after poisoned Russian spy is released from hospital

  • Sergei Skripal was exposed to nerve agent novichok with his daughter in March
  • He was found unconscious in Salisbury and spent weeks in a critical condition
  • Mr Skripal was poisoned with his daughter Yulia who was discharged last month
  • He is now being protected by 24 hour armed guard at an MI5 safehouse
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin wished the former spy 'good health' today 
  • Skripal 'would have died on the spot' if military-grade toxin had been used, he added
  • Russia's ambassador to the UK suggests Britain may have 'kidnapped' Skripals

Vladimir Putin has taunted Britain after Sergei Skripal's release from hospital - suggesting the Russian spy would have 'died on the spot' if he had been attacked with a military-grade toxin. 

Mr Skripal is being protected by 24-hour armed guard at an MI5 safe house after leaving hospital earlier this week, sources have revealed.

The 66-year-old, and his daughter Yulia, 33, were admitted to Salisbury District Hospital along with Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey after being exposed to the nerve agent in March. 

Britain has accused Russia of being behind the poisoning, saying it was caused by a type of nerve agent known as Novichok which was developed in the Soviet Union. 

Putin wished Skripal 'good health' during a press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel today. But he added: 'God grant him good health... If a military-grade poison had been used, the man would have died on the spot. Thank God he recovered and that he left (hospital).' 

Vladimir Putin (pictured today) has taunted Britain after Sergei Skripal's release from hospital - suggesting the Russian spy would have 'died on the spot' if he had been attacked with a military-grade toxin

Vladimir Putin (pictured today) has taunted Britain after Sergei Skripal's release from hospital - suggesting the Russian spy would have 'died on the spot' if he had been attacked with a military-grade toxin

Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) wished Skripal 'good health' during a press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel (right) today (right)

Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) wished Skripal 'good health' during a press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel (right) today (right)

Sergei Skripal, with his daughter Yulia Skripal, who was also exposed to a nerve agent

Sergei Skripal, with his daughter Yulia Skripal, who was also exposed to a nerve agent

Yulia Skripal, who recovered more quickly than her father was discharged last month

Yulia Skripal, who recovered more quickly than her father was discharged last month

Putin then accused Britain of failing to respond to the Kremlin's offer of help with the investigation. 'We have several times offered our British partners any necessary assistance in the investigation (of the poisoning). So far we have received no response. Our offer remains open,' he said. 

Mr Skripal, who nearly died after being exposed to the deadly nerve agent novichok, was discharged earlier this week and was whisked to an undisclosed location. 

His daughter Yulia, who was also poisoned and left gravely ill, left hospital last month.

Today, Russia's ambassador to the UK stepped up demands to be allowed to see the pair, suggesting they may be being detained by the British state.

Alexander Yakovenko said the pair were 'isolated', adding: 'You can call it kidnap.'

He welcomed the announcement that former spy Mr Skripal had been discharged from hospital. But Mr Yakovenko has claimed the UK is violating international law by not granting access to the Skripals.

The 1963 Vienna Convention gives consular officials access rights if one of their nationals is in prison, custody or detention.

Setting out Moscow's interpretation of the case, he said: 'We are saying that they are isolated because we don't have access to them.

'This is our interpretation. You can call it detained, you can call it isolated, you can call it kidnap. Unless we see them it is difficult to make a conclusion.'

He acknowledged that the Foreign Office had told him they did not interpret the situation in the same way and added, 'I got the impression that we will never see them'. 

Mr Yakovenko said: 'If it was really Novichok and they were poisoned by Novichok, the consequences would be very serious. My question was how they survived from Novichok.'

Britain has accused Russia of being behind the poisoning, saying it was caused by a type of nerve agent known as Novichok which was developed in the Soviet Union. President Putin is pictured with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Sochi, Russia, today

Britain has accused Russia of being behind the poisoning, saying it was caused by a type of nerve agent known as Novichok which was developed in the Soviet Union. President Putin is pictured with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Sochi, Russia, today

Putin (shaking hands with Angela Merkel) accused Britain of failing to respond to the Kremlin's offer of help with the investigation

Putin (shaking hands with Angela Merkel) accused Britain of failing to respond to the Kremlin's offer of help with the investigation

Moscow has furiously denied claims it was behind the Skripal poisoning, suggesting at various points it has been set up by British security services

At a press conference at his official residence in London after Mr Skripal was discharged, Mr Yakovenko said 'we are happy that he is all right'.

He added: 'We are still demanding access to these people. We want to understand how they feel.

'We want them to tell (us) personally what they want. If they don't want our assistance, that's fine, but we want to see them physically.'

Mr Yakovenko criticised the Government's attitude towards Moscow, highlighting Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson's comment that Russia should 'go away and shut up'.

The ambassador said: 'We in Russia, we know the price of words. You will never hear from our minister of defence 'Britain should shut up'. It's impossible.'

Mr Yakovenko, who was likened to the Iraqi propaganda chief known as Comical Ali during a parliamentary meeting with MPs and peers this week, said he had been given an apology by some lords.

'A few people from the House of Lords came to me yesterday and they apologised for the statements of the MPs,' he said.

'They know the price of words, they know how the ambassador of a big country should be treated.' 

Earlier today, a source told Mailonline Mr Skripal was released from hospital a few days ago 'and was taken to a safehouse owned by the security services'.

'These safehouses are distributed all over the country so he could be anywhere, it may be miles away from the Salisbury area.

'We don't know whether he has even been in touch with his daughter Yulia since leaving hospital.

'But rest assured he will be under armed guard 24-hours a day for the foreseeable future. 

Skripal and his daughter were found unconscious in Salisbury on March 4, and spent weeks in critical condition.

The hospital confirmed on Friday that all three patients had now been discharged. 

A forensic tent covering the bench where Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were discovered

A forensic tent covering the bench where Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were discovered

Police outside Sergei Skripal's home following the poisoning attack in March

Police outside Sergei Skripal's home following the poisoning attack in March

Treatment of such patients involves 'stabilising them, keeping them alive until their bodies could produce more enzymes to replace those that had been poisoned', it said in a statement.

Lorna Wilkinson, director of nursing at the hospital, said: 'We have been able to discharge Sergei Skripal.

'This is an important stage in his recovery, which will now take place away from the hospital.

'Treating him and the other two people poisoned by this nerve agent, while still providing outstanding care to the other patients who rely on our hospital, has been a huge and unprecedented challenge that I'm proud our staff at Salisbury Hospital have risen to.'

Army officers are pictured removing the bench where the Skripals collapsed

Army officers are pictured removing the bench where the Skripals collapsed

Putin vows to continue sending gas via Ukraine - despite plans for new pipeline to Germany

Russia intends to continue natural gas shipments via Ukraine despite a planned second pipeline to Germany, Vladimir Putin said today.

 The planned construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline would further call into question Ukraine's role as a key transit nation for Russian gas to Europe, and has become a wedge issue between Europe and the United States.

'We will continue gas shipments (via Ukraine) as long as they are economically justified,' Putin said during a press conference with visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

For her part, Merkel said that 'Germany believes Ukraine's role as a transit country should continue after the construction of Nord Stream 2... it has a strategic importance'.

She added that Germany was ready to help ensure such an outcome.

Russia intends to continue natural gas shipments via Ukraine despite a planned second pipeline to Germany, Vladimir Putin said today during talks with Angela Merkel (pictured)

Germany has supported plans by Russia's Gazprom to build the second pipeline under the Baltic Sea, preparatory works for which have begun and the pipeline should be completed in 2019.

However Merkel last month shifted gears to say that Nord Stream could not go forward without guarantees for Ukraine.

Merkel said Friday that while Germany looks at Nord Stream 2 as a business project 'there are other elements, so we need to think about guarantees for Ukraine'.

Ukraine has so far rejected proposals from Gazprom that would reduce the volumes of gas shipped through the country.

Russia has previously shut off deliveries to Ukraine in pricing disputes, which disrupted supplies to several nations in Europe during winter months.

Washington has previously raised concerns about Nord Stream 2, as it will reinforce Europe's dependence on Russian natural gas when US liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies are becoming available.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that the US administration has increased pressure on Europe to abandon the pipeline in exchange for avoiding a trade war.

Putin said he did not see anything new in the position of US President Donald Trump.

'Donald isn't just a president but a strong businessman. I think he is promoting his business interest to sell US liquefied natural gas on the European market,' said the Russian president.

He also said that the United States 'wants us to inject a little of our money into Ukraine' via transit fees, which he said amount to $2-3 billion per year.

Moscow and Kiev have been at loggerheads since 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea and is widely seen as having fuelled a separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine that has claimed some 10,000 lives.

Putin said Russia is ready for gas transit talks with Ukraine and is confident an economically advantageous deal can be found. 

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Salisbury District Hospital chief executive, Cara Charles-Barks, said: 'It is fantastic news that Sergei Skripal is well enough to leave Salisbury District Hospital. 

'That he, Yulia and DS Bailey have been able to leave us so soon after coming into contact with this nerve agent is thanks to the hard work, skill and professionalism of our clinicians, who provide outstanding care to all our patients, day in and day out.

'This has been a difficult time for those caught up in this incident - the patients, our staff and the people of Salisbury. 

'I want to thank the public for their support, and I want to pay a special tribute to both the clinical staff here at the trust and those who work so hard behind the scenes.

'They've demonstrated the very best of the NHS.' 

Detectives from the UK's Counter Terrorism Policing network released a statement saying they continues to 'investigate the attempted murders of Sergei and Yulia Skripal' 

It said: 'They are both making good progress and we are pleased that Mr Skripal has now also been released from hospital, which was announced by the NHS earlier this morning. 

Four locations around the cathedral city in Wiltshire were cordoned off by police after the attack, including The Mill pub 

Four locations around the cathedral city in Wiltshire were cordoned off by police after the attack, including The Mill pub 

Forensic officers search the area around the bench where the Skripals were found
A police officer stands guard outside a Zizzi's, known to be one the last places the Skripals had been

Forensic officers search the area around the bench where the Skripals were found, and a police officer stands guard outside a Zizzi's, known to be one the last places the Skripals had been

'This is a complex investigation and detectives continue to gather and piece together all the evidence to establish the full facts and circumstances behind this dreadful attack. 

'In the interests of Sergei and Yulia's safety, we will not be discussing any protective or security arrangements that are in place.'  

Meanwhile, Skripal's mother has demanded she be allowed to speak to her son.  

Yelena, who has not heard from the former spy since he was poisoned, has told a relative today that she wants to speak to him.

Yelena's carer Viktoria Skripal, who has been twice refused a British visa to see him and her cousin Yulia said: 'We have just told the news to his elderly mother who has been waiting for more than two months for any word from him or Yulia,' said Viktoria.

'She is begging the hospital, or whoever now decides Sergey's freedom of movement and speech, to please allow him to call her.'

Skripal's mother Yelena (left with her son in 2004) has demanded she be allowed to speak to her son

Skripal's mother Yelena (left with her son in 2004) has demanded she be allowed to speak to her son

Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey
Sergei Skripal

DS Nick Bailey (left) who was also poisoned in the attack when he raced to the aid of the Sergei Skripal (right) and his daughter Yulia

The UK government has blamed Russia for the attack, with Prime Minister Theresa May describing the incident as 'brazen' and 'despicable'.

But the Russian government denied any involvement. It has accused the UK of inventing a 'fake story'.

The PM's official spokeswoman said today: 'We welcome the news that staff have determined him well enough to be discharged.

What is the Novichok nerve agent used against the Skripals?

The Novichok nerve agent used against former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia is among the most deadly poisons ever created.

They were secretly developed by the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold war in the 1970s and 1980s.

Communist scientists developed the poison so it would not be able to be detected by Nato's chemical detection equipment.

They come in the form of a ultra-fine powder, Novichok is up to eight times more potent than the deadly VX gas.

Victims who are poisoned by the powder suffer muscle spasms, breathing problems and then cardiac arrest.

There is a known antidote to the nerve agent -  atropine can block the poison.

But doctors find it very tricky to administer the antidote because the dose would have to be so high it could prove fatal for the person. 

Novichok poisons are highly dangerous to handle, requiring the expertise of skilled scientists in a sophisticated lab.

Dr Vil Mirzayanov, former Chief of the Foreign Technical Counterintelligence Department at Russia’s premiere, was among the team of scientists who helped develop the agent.

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'He was the victim of a horrific attack.'  

The Skripals were in a critical condition for weeks and doctors at one point feared that, even if they survived, they might have suffered brain damage. 

Four locations around the cathedral city in Wiltshire were cordoned off by police after the attack.

These included Zizzi's restaurant and The Mill pub, known to be the last places the Skripals had been before being found comatose on a bench in the Maltings shopping precinct.

Hero police officer DS Nick Bailey, 38, originally came into contact with the deadly nerve agent with alleged ties to Russia when he ran to the aid of the Skripals.

Mr Bailey was the first of the three to be released from hospital, describing it as the worst thing to have ever happened to him in his life.

Ahmet Uzumcu, head of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, revealed the Skripals were poisoned with up to 100 milligrams of Novichok.

The attack has lead to a huge clean-up operation taking place in the cathedral city with multiple agencies and military personnel involved.

The cordons have now been released by police, apart from Mr Skripals residence on Christie Miller road.

A large decontamination operation has begun with many items - including the park bench where the Skripals were found - being taken away for destruction. 

In 2006 Mr Skripal, a former Russian colonel, was jailed in Russia for 13 years for passing on the identities of Russian spies in Europe to the UK intelligence services.

But in 2010 he was part of a prisoner swap between Moscow and the United States. 

Russian ambassador to the UK Alexander Yakovenko welcomed the news that Sergei Skripal had been discharged from hospital and repeated his demand for consular access to the former spy and his daughter Yulia.

At a press conference at his official residence in London he said: 'We are happy that he is all right.'

He added: 'We are still demanding access to these people. We want to understand how they feel.

'We want them to tell (us) personally what they want. If they don't want our assistance, that's fine, but we want to see them physically.'

Mr Yakovenko has claimed the UK is violating international law by not granting access to the Skripals. 

A timeline of the key developments in the Salisbury poisoning case

Russian agents attacked Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with Novichok in 2018

Russian agents attacked Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with Novichok in 2018

2010 - Sergei Skripal, a former Russian military intelligence officer jailed for spying for Britain, is released and flown to the UK as part of a swap with Russian agents caught in the United States. He settles in Salisbury.

March 3, 2018 - Yulia Skripal arrives at Heathrow Airport from Russia to visit her father in England.

March 4, 9.15am - Sergei Skripal's burgundy BMW is seen in suburban Salisbury, near a cemetery, where his wife and son are commemorated.

March 4, 1.30pm - The BMW is seen driving toward central Salisbury.

March 4, 1.40pm - The BMW is parked at a lot in central Salisbury.

A police officer stands guard outside the Zizzi restaurant where Sergei and Yulia had lunch before they collapsed in a nearby park

A police officer stands guard outside the Zizzi restaurant where Sergei and Yulia had lunch before they collapsed in a nearby park

March 4, afternoon - Sergei and Yulia Skripal visit the Bishops Mill pub.

March 4, 2.20pm to 3.35pm - Sergei and Yulia Skripal have lunch at the Zizzi restaurant.

March 4, 4.15pm - Emergency services are called by a passer-by concerned about a man and a woman in Salisbury city centre.

Officers find the Skripals unconscious on a bench. They are taken to Salisbury District Hospital, where they remain in critical condition.

March 5, morning - Police say two people in Salisbury are being treated for suspected exposure to an unknown substance. 

March 5, afternoon - Wiltshire Police, along with Public Health England, declare a 'major incident'

March 7 - Police announce that the Skripals were likely poisoned with a nerve agent in a targeted murder attempt.

They disclose that a police officer who responded to the incident is in serious condition in a hospital.

March 8 - Home Secretary Amber Rudd describes the use of a nerve agent on UK soil was a 'brazen and reckless act' of attempted murder

March 9 - About 180 troops trained in chemical warfare and decontamination are deployed to Salisbury to help with the police investigation.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says Moscow might be willing to assist with the investigation but expresses resentment at suggestions the Kremlin was behind the attack. 

March 11 - Public health officials tell people who visited the Zizzi restaurant or Bishops Mill pub in Salisbury on the day of the attack or the next day to wash their clothes as a precaution.

March 12, morning- Prime Minister Theresa May tells the House of Commons that the Skripals were poisoned with Novichok, a military-grade nerve agent developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. 

March 12, afternoon - Public Health England ask everyone who visited Salisbury town centre on the day of the attack to wash all of their clothes and belongings. 

Officers wearing chemical protection suits secure the forensic tent over the bench where Sergei and Yulia fell ill

Officers wearing chemical protection suits secure the forensic tent over the bench where Sergei and Yulia fell ill

March 14 - The PM announces the expulsion of 23 suspected Russian spies from the country's UK Embassy.  

March 22 - Nick Bailey, the police officer injured in the attack, is released from hospital.  

March 26 - The United States and 22 other countries join Britain in expelling scores of Russian spies from capitals across the globe. 

March 29 - Doctors say Yulia Skripal is 'improving rapidly' in hospital. 

'Unknown time in the spring'  - Dutch authorities expelled two suspected Russian spies who tried to hack into a Swiss laboratory

April 3 - The chief of the Porton Down defence laboratory said it could not verify the 'precise source' of the nerve agent.  

April 5, morning - Yulia Skripal's cousin Viktoria says she has received a call from Yulia saying she plans to leave hospital soon.

Dawn Sturgess died in hospital on July 8

Dawn Sturgess died in hospital on July 8

April 5, afternoon - A statement on behalf of Yulia is released by Metropolitan Police, in which she says her strength is 'growing daily' and that 'daddy is fine'.

April 9 - Ms Skripal is released from hospital and moved to a secure location.

May 18 - Sergei Skripal is released from hospital 11 weeks after he was poisoned.

June 30 - Dawn Sturgess and Charlie Rowley fall ill at a property in Amesbury, which is eight miles from Salisbury, and are rushed to hospital.

July 4 - Police declare a major incident after Ms Sturgess and Mr Rowley are exposed to an 'unknown substance', later revealed to be Novichok. 

July 5 - Sajid Javid demands an explanation over the two poisonings as he accuses the Russian state of using Britain as a 'dumping ground for poison'. 

July 8 - Mother-of-three Dawn Sturgess, 44, dies in hospital due to coming into contact with Novichok.

July 10 - Mr Rowley regains consciousness at hospital, and later tells his brother that Dawn had sprayed the Novichok onto her wrists.

July 19 - Police are believed to have identified the perpetrators of the attack.

August 20 -  Charlie Rowley is rushed to hospital as he starts to lose his sight, but doctors can't confirm whether it has anything to do with the poisoning.

August 26 - Charlie Rowley admitted to intensive care unit with meningitis 

August 28  - Police call in the 'super recognisers'  in bid to track down the poisoners

September 4 -  Charlie Rowley's brother says he has 'lost all hope' and doesn't have long to live.

Independent investigators, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, confirm the toxic chemical that killed Ms Sturgess was the same nerve agent as that which poisoned the Skripals. 

September 5 - Scotland Yard and CPS announce enough evidence to charge Russian nationals Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov for conspiracy to murder over Salisbury nerve agent attack. 

September 13 - Britain's most wanted men speak to RT and claim to be humble tourists 

September 26 - The real identity of one of the two assassins, named by police as Ruslan Boshirov, is reported to be Colonel Anatoliy Vladimirovich Chepiga.

October 3: New photo emerges that appears to show Col Chepiga on the Wall of Heroes at the Far-Eastern Military Academy, providing more evidence against the Kremlin's denials. 

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Who is Russian double agent Sergei Skripal? How 'Spy with the Louis Vuitton bag' narrowly avoided execution after selling secrets to MI6

Sergei Skripal (pictured) unmasked dozens of secret agents and gave information to MI6 

Sergei Skripal (pictured) unmasked dozens of secret agents and gave information to MI6 

Sergei Skripal, a former colonel in Russian military intelligence, was considered by the Kremlin to be one of the most damaging spies of his generation.

He was responsible for unmasking dozens of secret agents threatening Western interests by operating undercover in Europe.

Col Skripal, 66, allegedly received £78,000 in exchange for taking huge risks to pass classified information to MI6.

In 2006, he was sentenced to 13 years in a Russian labour camp after being convicted of passing invaluable Russian secrets to the UK.

A senior source in Moscow said at the time: 'This man is a big hero for MI6.'

After being convicted of 'high treason in the form of espionage' by Moscow's military court, Col Skripal was stripped of his rank, medals and state awards.

He was alleged by Russia's security service, the FSB, to have begun working for the British secret services while serving in the army in the 1990s.

He was sentenced to 13 years in a Russian labour camp when he was convicted of passing secrets to Britain 

He was sentenced to 13 years in a Russian labour camp when he was convicted of passing secrets to Britain 

He passed information classified as state secrets and was paid for the work by MI6, the FSB claimed.

Col Skripal pleaded guilty at the trial and co-operated with investigators, reports said at the time. He admitted his activities and gave a full account of his spying, which led to a reduced sentence. 

In July 2010, he was pardoned by then Russian president Dmitry Medvedev and was one of four spies exchanged for ten Russian agents deported from the US in an historic swap involving red-headed 'femme fatale' Anna Chapman.

Mrs Chapman, then 28, was a Manhattan socialite and diplomat's daughter, who had lived and worked in London during a four-year marriage to British public schoolboy Alex Chapman.

After the swap at Vienna airport, Col Skripal was one of two spies who came to Britain and he has kept a low profile for the past eight years.

He moved into a £350,000 home in Salisbury and collapsed outside a shopping centre in the city centre 

He moved into a £350,000 home in Salisbury and collapsed outside a shopping centre in the city centre 

He is understood to have been debriefed for months before being given a home and a pension.

The former spy was living at an address in Salisbury, Wiltshire, when the suspected poisoning took place in the city centre. 

Reports in Russia suggested that Mr Skripal was originally recruited by MI6 in Tallinn, Estonia, and may have lectured on the KGB tactics since moving to Britain.

He often went to his local shop to buy a particular type of Polish sausage and spent up to £40 a time on lottery scratch cards and was described as a 'polite' and 'kind' customer who often won money. 

Adam Blake who owns local firm A2B Taxis, said he 'fairly regularly' used to pick up Mr Skripal, who is fighting for his life after being exposed to a mystery substance.

Mr Blake told the Daily Mirror: 'He had a black-faced ring with an animal on it, a wolf I think, and would kiss the ring and ask if you wanted to kiss it.

'Then he would look each way, as if joking, and say, "I'm a Russian spy". He would say it to all the drivers and nobody ever believed him.

'I would often see him standing around town in doorways too, looking around suspiciously as if he was really trying to portray the spy image.'

He also joined the £10-a-year Railway Social Club in the city and neighbours said they did not know him well, although he organised a house-warming party shortly after moving in, inviting people by dropping notes through doors. 

It was also revealed how he had suffered two bereavements within just five years when his wife Lyudmila died aged 59 in 2012, before his son Alexandr passed away aged 43 in 2017. 

This video shows the evidence used to convict Skripal of spying in Russia and his high-profile arrest in Moscow in 2004 

His neighbour Blake Stephens, 24, said: 'He used to live with his wife but unfortunately she died in a car accident a while ago.' 

Col Skripal was turned by MI6 when he was posted abroad as a GRU military intelligence agent in Europe in the mid-1990s.

During his years working for MI6, the balding spy unmasked dozens of agents threatening Western interests.

Col Skripal was so well-connected that even after his retirement from his spy service in 1999 he continued to pass exceptional secrets to London by staying in touch with his former colleagues as a reservist officer. 

He was nicknamed 'the spy with the Louis Vuitton bag' after grainy pictures showed him carrying a bag at an airport en route to a meeting with his handlers.

He may finally have been snared by the FSB after passing his intelligence to MI6's infamous James Bond-style 'spy rock' – a fake stone packed with receiving equipment in a Moscow park.

Russian secret services exposed the ploy in 2006, revealing how British agents transmitted their data to the rock via a hidden hand-held device while walking past it.

Russian president Vladimir Putin (pictured yesterday) once hinted at how his country deals with spies by insisting that 'traitors always end in a bad way'

Russian president Vladimir Putin (pictured yesterday) once hinted at how his country deals with spies by insisting that 'traitors always end in a bad way'

After Col Skripal's conviction, one official said: 'His activities caused a significant blow to Russia's external security.'

Chief military prosecutor Sergei Fridinsky said: 'It is impossible to measure in roubles or anything else the amount of harm caused by Skripal.'

State-run TV in Russia even compared him to the legendary Soviet double agent Oleg Penkovsky, who spied for Britain and the US during the height of the Cold War.

Penkovsky was shot by a firing squad in 1963 and is regarded as one of the most effective spies of all time.  

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