Ex-Spy Sergei Skripal Regains Consciousness, Ability to Speak - Reports

Earlier, a Salisbury Hospital official confirmed that the ex-spy, who was poisoned in an alleged chemical attack in southern England last month, was recovering.

The former GRU Colonel Sergei Skripal is conscious and can speak, according to the Sky News television channel.

A Sky News television channel presenter said that soon the police would be able to talk with a person at the center of the poisoning incident in Salisbury; he added that the former Russian spy Sergei Skripal is no longer in critical condition and is responding well to treatment, and that he is conscious and able to speak.

Earlier, the BBC reported that Yulia Skripal had regained consciousness and the ability to talk.

On April 5, UK police stated on behalf of Yulia Skripal that she "woke up over a week ago now" and is glad her strength is "growing daily."

READ MORE: 'Strength is Growing Daily': What We Know So Far About Yulia Skripal's Awakening

The next day, a medical director at Salisbury District Hospital, stated that Sergei Skripal was responding well to treatment and was improving quickly.

The Russian Embassy in the United Kingdom welcomed the news about the improvement in the health condition of Sergei and Yulia Skripal.

On March 4, the former Russian GRU colonel Sergei Skripal, who worked for UK intelligence, and his daughter Yulia were found unconscious at a shopping center in Salisbury, England. The United Kingdom accused Russia of orchestrating the attack with a weapons-grade nerve agent, A234, allegedly linked to the Soviet-made Novichok group.

Moscow has strongly refuted the allegations, saying it has nothing to do with the incident and has demanded access to the case's materials.

Theresa May opted to expel 23 Russian diplomats from their posts in response to the poisoning of the Skripals on March 4 in Salisbury. Several UK allies followed suit, and Russia, in turn, imposed a raft of retaliatory tit-for-tat diplomatic sanctions against them.