The National Security Council is prepared to advise President Trump to expel a to-be-determined number of Russian diplomats in the U.S. on Friday, following the poisoning of a former Russian spy and his daughter in the United Kingdom earlier this month.
The expected recommendation comes after a White House meeting on Wednesday where the NCS put forth several actions the U.S. could take against Russia, sources told CNN.
The overall conclusion of the meeting was that Trump should remove the Russian diplomats from the U.S., and it’s expected that if Trump agrees with the plan, it could be implemented as early as next week.
Earlier this month, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May expelled 23 Russian diplomats in response to the incident after the U.K. determined Russia had been behind the March 4 attack.
“This represents an unlawful use of force by the Russian state against the United Kingdom,” May said told the House of Commons. “It must therefore be met with a full and robust response.”
A senior State Department official supported the U.K.’s decision, according to CNN.
“We stand in solidarity with our Allies in the United Kingdom, and we fully supported the UK’s decision to expel diplomats and take other actions to respond,” the official said on Tuesday. “The U.S. is considering a range of options to respond to this outrageous incident, both to demonstrate our solidarity with our Ally and to hold Russia accountable for its clear breach of international norms and agreements.”
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, before his ouster was announced earlier this month, blamed Russia for the poisoning. Meanwhile, White House spokesman Raj Shah told reporters Russia “appears” to be behind the attack and that the U.S. stands with the U.K. “100 percent.”
Russian officials have denied that Russia was responsible for the poisoning and Russian President Vladimir Putin said the accusations were a result of “delirium.”
