On Tuesday 13 March, European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans called on Europeans to show "unwavering" solidarity towards the UK after the poisoning of a former Russian spy and his daughter with a military-grade nerve agent, probably by Russia.
"It is of the utmost importance that those who are responsible for the nerve gas attack see very clearly that there is unequivocal, unwavering and very strong European solidarity with the British people and the British government", he told the European Parliament plenary session.
Timmermans wants the European Council, which is meeting next week, to express "its full solidarity" with the UK. "We cannot have nerve gas being used in our societies. This should be addressed by all of us, not just left to Prime Minister May and British government. This is collective European responsibility, also under the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) rules", he added.
The leader of the European Parliament's ALDE Group, Guy Verhofstadt, meanwhile urged European leaders to undertake a "joint response" in the form of "counter-measures" targeting Russia. Russia, however, denies any involvement in the affair. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)