Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned, five European nations say

Five European nations say Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a lethal toxin, and are blaming the Russian state for the attack. The Foreign Ministries of the U.K., France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands said on Saturday (February 14, 2026) that analysis of samples from Navalny, who died two years ago, “have conclusively confirmed the presence of epibatidine.” It is a toxin found in poison dart frogs in South America. Also Read | Russian Opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s posthumous memoir is a testament to resilience The countries said that “only the Russian state had the combined means, motive and disregard for international law” to carry out the attack. They said they were reporting Russia to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons for a breach of the Chemical Weapons Convention. Navalny, who crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests as President Vladimir Putin’s fiercest foe, died in the Arctic penal colony in February 2024. He was serving a 19-year sentence that he believed to be politically motivated. Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, said last year that two independent labs had found that her husband was poisoned shortly before his death. Ms. Navalnaya has repeatedly blamed Mr. Putin for Navalny’s death, something Russian officials have vehemently denied. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot ​on Saturday (February 14, 2026) said ‌President Vladimir Putin was willing ​to use chemical ⁠weapons against Russians, citing latest Western conclusions that Kremlin ‌critic Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a ‌lethal nerve ‌agent. “Two years ago, ‌Alexei Navalny died from poisoning caused by one of the deadliest nerve agents. We now know that ‌Vladimir Putin is prepared to ​use chemical weapons against his own ⁠people to maintain his grip ⁠on power,” Mr. Barrot said in remarks ‌on X. Russia / death