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Scientist who accused Moscow of abusing his Novichok nerve agent for ‘state-level’ hits is found dead
Vladimir Uglev, a scientist who helped develop Novichok and later accused Moscow of using it in state-directed poisonings, has been found dead aged 80. His death highlights the history and human consequences of the nerve agent, which has been used against Kremlin critics and in the 2018 poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Britain.
Uglev died on 26 October, according to The Insider, but no cause of death or explanation for the delay in announcing it was reported. He worked on early Novichok agents in Soviet laboratories from 1975 to 1990, and said the Skripal attack was a “state-level hit”. Novichok was also used to poison Alexei Navalny in 2020; he survived, returned to Russia and died in prison in 2024.
In short
- Novichok developer Vladimir Uglev has died aged 80.
- He accused Moscow of using the nerve agent in poisonings.
- No cause of death has been reported.
Explained simply
Novichok is a group of highly toxic nerve agents developed in secret Soviet laboratories during the Cold War. Vladimir Uglev worked on early versions from 1975 to 1990; after the Soviet Union ended, he spoke publicly about the agents and their development.
The name became widely known after Sergei and Yulia Skripal were poisoned in Salisbury, England, in 2018. Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was also poisoned with Novichok in 2020. These cases drew attention to the risks of chemical weapons and their alleged use against people critical of the Russian government.
Uglev said the Skripal poisoning was a “state-level hit”, meaning he believed it had been directed by a state. Russia has denied involvement in the Skripal attack. His account is part of the public record about Novichok, though details of the programme and its use remain contested.