Protesters and mourners rally at the Russian Embassy following the death of Alexei Navalny on February 16, 2024 in Washington, DC. KEVIN DIETSCH / AFP
Five European countries, including Britain, France and Germany, accused Russia of "poisoning" opposition leader Alexei Navalny in prison in 2024 using a "rare toxin," on Saturday, February 14, on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. "The UK, Sweden, France, Germany and The Netherlands are confident that Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a lethal toxin," the countries said in a joint statement, following "analyses of samples" from his body.
The staunch critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin died in an Arctic prison in February 2024, while serving a 19-year prison sentence. The epibatidine toxin found in the skin of dart frogs native to South America was found in samples and "highly likely resulted in his death," the European states said.
"Only the Russian state had the means, motive and opportunity to deploy this lethal toxin to target Navalny during his imprisonment in a Russian penal colony in Siberia, and we hold it responsible for his death," the UK foreign office added in a statement.
"We now know that Vladimir Putin is prepared to use chemical weapons against his own people to remain in power," French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot wrote on X, adding that Navalny had died in prison in 2024 "as a result of poisoning with one of the deadliest nerve agents."
