Britain says it will do whatever necessary to counter Russian threat

Britain will take steps to counter the threat from Russia and will try to detain the Russian military intelligence (GRU) operatives behind a 2018 nerve attack if they ever set foot outside Russia, Britain's interior minister said on Tuesday.

"The government will continue to respond extremely robustly to the enduring and significant threat from the Russian state," interior minister Priti Patel told parliament.

"We respect the people of Russia but we will do whatever it takes, everything it takes to keep our country safe," Patel said.