The Russian government says the United Kingdom is using the mysterious poisoning a former Russian spy and his daughter in England last March to promote the hatred of Russia.
"We are witnessing Great Britain's rather unprecedented Russia-hating mania, which manifests itself in various ways," Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to Tass, the Kremlin's official news agency.
"You can see for yourself that the tidal wave of hate against Russia does not stem from any events regarding Great Britain and its citizens, but it was triggered by a provocation staged by the UK - I mean the so-called Skripal case."
Pescov's comments about the March attack on Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, came as the British House of Commons Foreign Affairs Select Committee released a scathing report entitled: "Moscow's Gold: Russian Corruption in the UK."
It charges Russia with using London as a "laundromat" for its dirty money and calls for the Britain "to sanction more Kremlin-connected individuals."
There is no excuse for the UK to turn a blind eye as President [Vladimir] Putin's kleptocrats and human rights abusers use money laundered through London to corrupt our friends, weaken our alliances, and erode faith in our institutions," the committee said.
It added: "The UK must get serious about confronting the full spectrum of President Putin's offensive measures. The robust rhetoric from the Prime Minister following the attempted murder of Sergei Skripal and his daughter has been undermined by the 'business as usual' sign hanging on the UK's front door …
"We can no longer allow 'business as usual'. The UK must be clear that the corruption stemming from the Kremlin is no longer welcome in our markets and we will act."
On March 4, Skripal -- convicted in Russia of spying for Great Britain and later swapped for Russian intelligence officers -- and his daughter, were found unconscious on a park bench in Salisbury, a cathedral city in Wiltshire, some 78 miles southwest of London.
It was determined they were the victims of a highly toxic nerve gas developed in Russia. Both were admitted to a hospital in critical condition, but survived the attack and have since been discharged.
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