Five European nations have jointly accused the Kremlin of poisoning Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny with a lethal toxin derived from poison dart frogs, a claim Russia has vehemently denied. The accusation, made public on Saturday, centers on the presence of epibatidine, a neurotoxin found in the skin of South American dart frogs, which is not naturally occurring in Russia.
The foreign ministries of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden, and the Netherlands released a statement asserting that analysis of samples taken from Navalny, who died in an Arctic penal colony on February 16, 2024, “conclusively confirmed the presence of epibatidine.” The statement further alleges that Russia “had the means, motive and opportunity to administer this poison,” and announced the intention to report Russia to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) for a breach of the Chemical Weapons Convention.
The Kremlin has not yet issued a detailed response to the specific allegations regarding epibatidine, but has consistently rejected accusations of involvement in Navalny’s death. Russian officials have previously characterized investigations into the matter as politically motivated and lacking credibility.
This accusation marks the second time Navalny has been the target of alleged poisoning attempts orchestrated by the Russian state. In 2020, he was poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok, prompting international condemnation and further straining relations with Western governments. That incident led to his hospitalization in Germany, and upon his return to Russia, he was immediately arrested and subsequently sentenced to a 19-year prison term.
British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper stated that the use of such a toxin demonstrated “the despicable tools” employed by the Russian state and its “overwhelming fear of political opposition.”
The announcement comes as Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, attended the Munich Security Conference in Germany, coinciding with the approach of the second anniversary of her husband’s death. Navalny’s allies have long maintained that President Vladimir Putin was directly responsible for his death, scrutinizing the investigation in the days following his passing.
Porton Down, a UK defense science and technology laboratory, played a role in identifying Novichok in the 2020 poisoning, and is understood to have contributed to the analysis confirming the presence of epibatidine in the latest investigation, though details of their involvement have not been publicly disclosed.
The OPCW has not yet commented on the referral from the five European nations. The organization is responsible for enforcing the Chemical Weapons Convention, which prohibits the development, production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons.
