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| - France on Wednesday condemned the use of the nerve agent Novichok in the poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny as "shocking and irresponsible", adding Russia had grave questions to answer in the case. "I want to condemn in the strongest terms the shocking and irresponsible use of such an agent," Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a statement after Germany, where Navalny is being treated after falling ill in Siberia, said he had been poisoned with Novichok. Calling on Russia to explain what had happened, he added: "Given Mr Navalny's political status in Russia, the attack against him raises serious questions. It is the responsibility of the Russian authorities to respond to them." France under President Emmanuel Macron has pursued a policy of dialogue with Russia, even on issues where they disagree, a position that has sometimes put him at odds with EU allies. But over recent days, it has started to match Berlin's tougher rhetoric both on the poisoning of Navalny and the post-election crisis in Russia's neighbour Belarus. "It is essential and urgent that the Russian authorities can establish, without delay, the circumstances in which the use of a nerve agent against Mr Navalny was possible," Le Drian said, emphasising that the incident had violated the ban on chemical weapons. He added: "France is in close contact with the German authorities, as well as with its partners, to coordinate the response in the relevant organisations" and in particular at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). sjw/spm
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