Overview
- The UK, France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands said tests on samples from Alexei Navalny’s body conclusively detected epibatidine, a potent neurotoxin found in South American dart frogs and not naturally present in Russia.
- In a joint statement, the governments asserted Russia had the means, motive and opportunity to administer the toxin to Navalny while he was imprisoned, calling poisoning highly likely the cause of his 2024 death.
- The findings were unveiled at the Munich Security Conference, where Yulia Navalnaya said she now has proof her husband was poisoned and urged accountability.
- The countries have notified the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons of a suspected breach of the Chemical Weapons Convention and signaled further steps to seek accountability.
- The Kremlin rejected the accusations as propaganda and demanded disclosure of test formulas, while details of how the toxin was delivered or how samples were obtained remain unclear, with reports pointing to UK Porton Down’s role in the analysis.