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What Kyiv's neighbours did after the Skripal poisoning
Summary
A look back at reactions across the region to the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal, as they stood by 29 March 2018.
What did the response to the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal look like from Ukraine's side of Europe on 29 March 2018? By then, a pattern of reactions had formed over two days, and it ranged from diplomatic expulsions to talk of force.
On 27 March 2018, NATO and the government of Australia expelled Russian diplomats. That was the institutional answer: measured, collective and aimed at Russia's diplomatic presence.
The next day, 28 March 2018, brought a markedly sharper voice from Kyiv. Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, himself the victim of a September 2004 poisoning, called for military action against Russia to be considered. His call stood apart from the expulsions announced a day earlier, and it carried the weight of personal experience.
The same day, Poland signed a deal with the United States to buy a US$4.75 billion Patriot missile system. Nothing in the reports ties that purchase to the Skripal case, and it should not be read as a response to it. It does show, however, that defence spending in the region was moving on its own track while the diplomatic argument unfolded.
Two registers of response
Taken together, the reports from 27 and 28 March 2018 show two registers. One was the cautious language of expulsions. The other was a former president's willingness to raise the military option. Between them sat a large arms purchase by one of Ukraine's neighbours, announced without reference to the poisoning.
