Russian officials have angrily rejected the conclusions of a UK parliamentary report, accusing Britain of taking a “leading role in Russophobia” and seeking to distract from a loss of status due to the Brexit crisis. The report, which was long delayed, accused Russia of a campaign of cyber-attacks, buying influence, spying and other meddling in British affairs.
Konstantin Kosachev, head of the foreign affairs committee of Russia’s Federation Council, claimed the report cleared Moscow of attempts to influence the 2016 Brexit referendum, a talking point echoed by prominent Brexit campaigners in the UK. However, the report actually stated that the British government had failed to prepare or conduct any proper assessment of Kremlin attempts to interfere with the vote.
Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian foreign ministry, dismissed the report as “no sensation” and labelled it “Russophobia”, a term Moscow has used in response to accusations following the 2018 Salisbury attacks. Another lawmaker, Vladimir Dzhabarov, compared the allegations to those in the Skripal case and the 2006 poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, which Russia has denied involvement in.
Kosachev called the allegations “dangerous” and compared them to “conspiracy theories ... sucked from one’s fingers”. The report’s findings have been met with a chilly reception in Moscow, where officials often comment on such accusations, driving evening news coverage and debate-style television shows.
