Putin GUILTY Of Chemical Murder On British Soil

A UK inquiry has found Vladimir Putin bears “moral responsibility” for the 2018 Novichok poisoning that killed Dawn Sturgess, marking the strongest official condemnation yet of Russia’s chemical weapons attack on British soil.

Story Snapshot

UK inquiry concludes Putin “morally responsible” for Dawn Sturgess’s death from Novichok poisoning
Russian GRU officers used military-grade nerve agent in Salisbury assassination attempt against former spy
Britain imposes fresh sanctions on Russian officials following inquiry findings
Attack represents unprecedented use of banned chemical weapons in NATO territory

Official Inquiry Delivers Damning Verdict

The Dawn Sturgess public inquiry has delivered its most significant finding, declaring Vladimir Putin bears “moral responsibility” for the 2018 Novichok attack that killed an innocent British woman. Chairman Lord Hughes concluded the Russian president’s centralized security apparatus makes high-level authorization of such sophisticated operations virtually certain. The inquiry’s findings represent the strongest official condemnation of Putin’s role in deploying banned chemical weapons on UK soil, validating years of intelligence assessments about Russian state terrorism.

GRU Operation Exposed Russian State Terror

Evidence presented to the inquiry confirmed two Russian military intelligence officers, Alexander Mishkin and Anatoly Chepiga, carried out the March 2018 assassination attempt using Novichok nerve agent. The sophisticated operation targeted former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury. Dawn Sturgess died months later after discovering a discarded perfume bottle containing the deadly substance. The attack’s complexity and use of military-grade chemical weapons demonstrates the operation required significant state resources and approval from Russia’s highest levels of government.

Chemical Weapons Convention Violated

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons confirmed the nerve agent used was a Novichok-type substance developed by Soviet chemical weapons programs. This represents a clear violation of international law and the Chemical Weapons Convention, which prohibits the development, production, and use of such substances. The attack occurred near Porton Down, Britain’s chemical defense facility, adding strategic insult to the violation of UK sovereignty. Russia’s willingness to deploy banned weapons in a NATO country signals dangerous escalation in Moscow’s confrontational approach toward the West.

Britain Responds with Fresh Sanctions

Following the inquiry’s findings, the UK government announced new sanctions targeting Russian officials connected to the Novichok program and GRU operations. These measures complement existing diplomatic and financial penalties imposed since 2018, including the expulsion of Russian intelligence officers operating under diplomatic cover. The sanctions demonstrate continued Western resolve to impose costs on Moscow for its reckless use of chemical weapons and extraterritorial assassination attempts against perceived enemies of the Russian state.

The Salisbury attack joins a pattern of Russian overseas operations under Putin’s leadership, including the 2006 polonium poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko in London. These incidents reveal Moscow’s systematic targeting of former intelligence officers and dissidents living under Western protection, undermining international law and threatening the safety of NATO allies. The inquiry’s findings provide crucial evidence for holding Russia accountable for its use of chemical weapons as instruments of state policy.