UK Poisoning Allegation: Niece of ex-Russian spy says she fears he may be dead

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02:28

The niece of the former Russian spy Sergei Skripal says she's afraid her uncle may be dead, and she's asking him to contact her or other family members in Russia. Victoria Skripal said she doesn't recognize the two men who the British authorities said were behind the nerve agent attack on Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia back in March. CGTN's Lucy Taylor reports from Moscow.

Victoria Skripal has become a minor celebrity in Russia since the attack on her uncle and cousin in the British town of Salisbury.

But she hasn't heard from Sergei Skripal since before the attack - and says she's skeptical about the British version of events which left him and his daughter Yulia critically ill.

Reporter: "You say there's no evidence Russia committed this attack - Is there anything the UK could show you that would convince you to change your position?"

VICTORIA SKRIPAL RELATIVE OF ATTACK VICTIMS "From the beginning, I have needed only one thing, and that's for Yulia to come and live her life freely here. And the second thing that I want, is for Sergei to call his mother. I know that if he is OK, he will call us. We just want to see that he is alive."

Her intervention came a day after the UK released close circuit TV images, names and details of the two men it alleges carried out the nerve agent attack.

British authorities say the suspects were Russian military intelligence officers, and the attack was 'almost certainly' approved at a senior level of the Russian state.

They say Sergey Skripal and his daughter Yulia have now recovered. British Security Minister Ben Wallace says Russian President Vladimir Putin was 'ultimately' behind the attack. But the Kremlin calls that accusation unacceptable.

DMITRY PESKOV RUSSIAN PRESIDENTIAL SPOKESMAN "We again say that neither the upper leadership, nor the leadership a rank lower or any official representatives had or have anything to do with the events in Salisbury, it is out of the question. Any suggestions of this kind or accusations, I repeat, are unacceptable."

It's another development in a fight which has further strained relations among Russia, the UK and its allies.

LUCY TAYLOR MOSCOW "Moscow says it wasn't involved in this attack - and London says there's little doubt that it was. This stepped up rhetoric is not likely to rattle the Kremlin - but what might, is if the UK follows up its words with new economic sanctions. Lucy Taylor, CGTN, Moscow."