The United Kingdom and several European allies have accused Russia of killing opposition leader Alexei Navalny using a poison developed from a toxic frog compound.
Two years after Navalny’s death in a Siberian penal colony, Britain and its partners said their assessment of material samples taken from his body points to the use of epibatidine — a toxin naturally found in poison dart frogs native to South America.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper stated that “only the Russian government had the means, motive and opportunity” to deploy such a substance while Navalny was imprisoned in Russia.
According to Russia’s state news agency Tass, Moscow rejected the findings as an “information campaign.” However, Cooper said there is no innocent explanation for the presence of epibatidine in Navalny’s body.
A joint statement was issued by the United Kingdom, Sweden, France, Germany and the Netherlands, asserting that only the Russian state could have carried out such an act during Navalny’s detention in a Siberian penal colony. The statement noted that poison dart frogs in captivity do not produce the toxin and that it does not occur naturally in Russia.
The UK Foreign Office confirmed that Britain has informed the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) regarding what it describes as a potential breach of the Chemical Weapons Convention by Russia.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, praising Navalny’s “great courage,” said his determination to expose the truth has left a lasting legacy.
“I am doing everything necessary to protect our people, our values and our way of life from the threat of Russia and Putin’s murderous intent,” Starmer added.
The accusations mark a significant escalation in diplomatic tensions between London and Moscow, further deepening the rift between Russia and Western governments.
