UK involvement in Iraq invasion was wrong, illegal: Russia
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In this March 27, 2003 file photo, British tank crews wait on the front line at Basra, Iraq.
Russia says the damning Chilcot report on Britain’s role in the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 is consistent with Moscow’s longtime position that such military intervention in a sovereign state was “wrong and illegal.”
“Even a glance [at the report] is enough to confirm what Russia has said during many years: we called the invasion in Iraq illegal and unnecessary,” said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova during a Thursday press briefing.
On Wednesday, a long-awaited formal inquiry on Britain’s participation in the 2003 invasion of Iraq found that the war was based on flawed intelligence, and that London chose to go to war before trying diplomatic options.
“We have concluded that the UK chose to join the invasion of Iraq before the peaceful options for disarmament had been exhausted. Military action at that time was not a last resort,” said John Chilcot, chairman of the UK’s Iraq Inquiry.
The Russian official emphasized the need for those guilty to be held to account.
“The main question remains: who and how will be held accountable for the deaths of at least 150 thousand citizens of Iraq,” she added.
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