Germany. Alexei Navalny, one of Putin’s leading opponents, after being taken to Germany for medical checks following a sudden illness, is diagnosed by German military experts as having been poisoned with Novichok. Novichok is a set of related molecules, a class of nerve agents, developed in the Soviet Union. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declares the poisoning a despicable and cowardly act and that those responsible must be brought to justice. It is the same poison that, according to British authorities, was used in 2018 to intoxicate Sergei Skripal, a former KGB agent, and his daughter. The Kremlin does not deem a thorough investigation into the Navalny case necessary.
