British foreign minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday that the timing of an attack using military-grade nerve agent against a former Russian spy in England was probably connected to the weekend election won by Russia's president Vladimir Putin.

Johnson was being questioned by lawmakers in the House of Common's Foreign Affairs Committee over the chemical poisoning of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal in the English city of Salisbury this month.

He said Putin wanted to cause trouble wherever he can so he can portray his country as strong again after the collapse of the Soviet Union and clarified that Britain's quarrel is not with Russian people, but with Putin's Kremlin.

Johnson also said Putin will try to bolster Russia's image through hosting the World Cup in a similar way to how Adolf Hitler used the 1936 Olympics when it was held in Nazi Germany, adding that the safety of soccer fans and players is of "crucial importance".

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