Navalny died after being poisoned with dart frog toxin by Kremlin, UK says
Putin’s arch rival Alexei Navalny died Britain and its allies said Russia was responsible for the attack after it was poisoned with a deadly toxin.
England, France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands said the following at the press conference: Munich security conference on Saturday He said analysis of samples taken from Navalny “unequivocally confirmed” the presence of epibatidine, a toxin found in poison dart frogs in South America.
Secretary of State Yvette Cooper said only Russia had the “means, motive and opportunity” to carry out such an attack.
For the latest updates on the Munich security conference, read our live blog HERE
(AFP via Getty Images)
The countries said they reported the poisoning incident to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
After the press conference, his widow, Yulia Navalnaya, called for Vladimir Putin to be “held accountable.” She wrote: “I was sure from day one that my husband was poisoned, but now there is proof: Putin killed Alexei with a chemical weapon.”
The Kremlin has always denied causing Navalny’s death.
Navalny, a troublemaker for the Kremlin who fought against official corruption and organized mass anti-Kremlin protests, died in a penal colony in Siberia in February 2024.
He was serving a 19-year prison sentence, which he believed was politically motivated, when he died at the age of 47.
Vladimir Putin (AP)
It is unclear how the frog poison was allegedly given to Navalny. However, allies also pointed to the attempt to poison Navalny with the nerve agent Novichok in 2020, following the Salisbury poisonings in 2018.
Ms Navalnaya said last year that two independent laboratories had determined that her husband had been poisoned shortly before his death.
He added in his statement: “I am grateful to the European states for the meticulous work they have carried out for two years and for revealing the facts. “Vladimir Putin is a murderer. He must be held accountable for all the crimes he committed.”
Ms Cooper said: “Since Yulia Navalnaya announced the loss of her husband here in Munich two years ago, the UK has pursued the truth about Alexei Navalny’s death with fierce determination.
Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, steps away from her photo in 2024 ((c) Copyright 2024, dpa (www.dpa.de). Alle Rechte vorbehalten)
“Only the Russian Government had the means, the incentive and the opportunity to use this lethal poison against Alexei Navalny during his detention in Russia.
“Today, Britain stands with his widow, shedding light on the Kremlin’s barbaric plan to silence her voice.”
He added: “Russia saw Navalny as a threat. By using this form of poison, the Russian state demonstrated the vile tools at its disposal and its overwhelming fear of political opposition.”
In the joint statement of the five countries, it was stated that “they are sure that Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a lethal toxin.”
He added: “This is the conclusion of our governments based on the analysis of samples taken from Alexei Navalny.
“These analyzes conclusively confirmed the presence of epibatidine. Epibatidine is a toxin found in poison dart frogs in South America. It does not occur naturally in Russia.”
“Russia claimed that Navalny died of natural causes. However, given the toxicity of epibatidine and the reported symptoms, it is highly likely that the cause of death was poisoning.
“Navalny died while in prison, which means Russia had the means, justification and opportunity to inflict this poison on him.”
