LONDON
\nBritain will consider \u201cincreasing sanctions\u201d against Russia following findings from five European states that opposition leader Alexei Navalny was killed by dart-frog toxin in a Russian prison, UK foreign minister Yvette Cooper said Sunday.
\n\u201cWe continue to look at coordinated action, including increasing sanctions on the Russian regime,\u201d Cooper told the BBC from the Munich Security Conference, where the UK, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden announced findings that the Russian state was a prime suspect for poisoning Navalny two years ago.
\nNavalny, a staunch critic of President Vladimir Putin, died in a Russian prison in mysterious conditions on February 16, 2024, while serving a 19-year sentence.
\nThe five European countries on Saturday said that a deadly toxin known as epibatidine, found in Ecuadorian dart frogs, was found on laboratory analyzes of samples from his body.
\nCooper told Sky News that the toxin can also be produced synthetically.
\n\u201cWe do know that the Russian regime has had possession of this particular chemical,\u201d the British foreign minister said.
\n\u201cRussia claimed that Navalny died of natural causes. But given the toxicity of epibatidine and reported symptoms, poisoning was highly likely the cause of his death,\u201d the European countries said in a joint statement Saturday.
\nBritain\u2019s foreign office said separately that \u201conly the Russian state had the means, motive and opportunity to deploy this lethal toxin.\u201d It added: \u201cWe hold it (Russia) responsible for his death.\u201d
\nUK Prime Minister Keir Starmer hailed Navalny\u2019s \u201ccourage in the face of tyranny\u201d in a social media post, slamming \u201cPutin\u2019s murderous intent.\u201d
\nRussia\u2019s foreign ministry spokeswoman and Moscow\u2019s embassy in London dismissed the Western report.
\nThe Kremlin has never given a full explanation for Navalny\u2019s death, only saying he fell ill and died suddenly after taking a walk in his prison colony.
\nPutin said in 2024 that Navalny had \u201cpassed away.\u201d The opposition leader died shortly before a presidential election in Russia.
\nOn Saturday, Navalny\u2019s widow, Yulia Navalnya, said it was now \u201cscience-proven\u201d that the Kremlin opponent had been murdered, two years after his death was announced during the same annual conference in Germany.
\nNavalnaya last September said that laboratory analysis of smuggled biological samples found that her husband was killed by poisoning.
\nFrench Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot paid \u201ctribute\u201d to Navalny after the findings.
\n\u201cWe now know that Vladimir Putin is prepared to use biological weapons against his own people to remain in power,\u201d Barrot said in a post on X.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
LONDON Britain will consider \u201cincreasing sanctions\u201d against Russia following findings from five European states that opposition leader Alexei Navalny was killed by dart-frog toxin in a Russian prison, UK foreign minister Yvette Cooper said Sunday. \u201cWe continue to look at coordinated action, including increasing sanctions on the Russian regime,\u201d Cooper told the BBC from the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":531603,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-531583","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n