Salisbury poisoning suspect included in new sanctions against Russia

The UK has announced a wave of new sanctions against Russia, including Salisbury poisoning suspect Denis Sergeev.

Suppliers supporting Russia’s military production and Russian-backed mercenary groups operating in Sub-Saharan Africa are also being targeted, the Foreign Office said.

The 56 sanctions will target entities based in China, Turkey and Central Asia involved in the supply and production of goods including machine tools, microelectronics and components for drones.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the sanctions “build on the UK’s mission to combat Russian malign activity globally”.

This comes as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is set to attend the European Political Community Summit in Budapest on Thursday, where he is expected to discuss efforts to combat Russian malign activity across Europe and reaffirm the UK’s unwavering support for Ukraine.

GRU agent Denis Sergeev, who used the alias Sergey Fedotov while in the UK, is the third individual facing charges in connection with the 2018 Novichok attack.

Alexander Mishkin, who used the name Alexander Petrov while in the UK, and Anatoliy Chepiga, who used the alias Ruslan Boshirov, are also suspects of the attempted murders of a former Russian spy and his daughter.

Sergei Skripal, his daughter Yulia and former police officer Nick Bailey, who were poisoned in Salisbury in March 2018, all survived.

In July 2018, Dawn Sturgess, 44, died after being exposed to the nerve agent Novichok, which had been left in a discarded perfume bottle in nearby Amesbury, Wiltshire.

Announcing the sanctions, Mr Lammy said: “Today’s measures will continue to push back on the Kremlin’s corrosive foreign policy, undermining Russia’s attempts to foster instability across Africa and disrupting the supply of vital equipment for Putin’s war machine. And smashing the illicit international networks that Russia has worked so hard to forge.

“Putin is nearly 1,000 days into a war he thought would only take a few. He will fail and I will continue to bear down on the Kremlin and support the Ukrainian people in their fight for freedom.

“Today’s sanctions further build on the UK’s mission to combat Russian malign activity globally.

“Over the last month, the UK has directly targeted Russia’s illicit shadow fleet, condemned the abhorrent use of banned chemical weapons in Ukraine, cracked down on malicious Russian cyber gangs and sanctioned the Kremlin’s mouthpieces who recklessly spread Putin’s lies across the world.”

The sanctions also target three private mercenary groups with links to the Kremlin, including Africa Corps, and 11 individuals associated with Russian proxies.