Ukraine-Russia war latest: Moscow condemned over ‘barbaric’ Navalny plot as civilians killed in drone strikes

Yvette Cooper suggested new sanctions against Moscow could follow from Britain blaming the Kremlin for poisoning Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny

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Foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said the UK and its allies exposed a “barbaric Kremlin plot” to poison opposition leader Alexei Navalny as she suggested new sanctions against Moscow could follow.

The Foreign Office and four of the UK’s allies made the announcement at the Munich Security Conference, blaming the Kremlin for poisoning Navalny.

Ms Cooper told Sky News: “They wanted to silence him because he was a critic of their regime and that is why we have exposed this barbaric Kremlin plot to do so and made sure that we have done so with evidence as well.”

The Russian embassy in London has denied Moscow was involved in Mr Navalny’s death and described the announcement as “feeble-mindedness of Western fabulists”.

On Saturday, drone strikes killed one person in Ukraine and another in Russia, Ukrainian officials said, ahead of fresh talks next week in Geneva aimed at ending the war.

An elderly woman died when a Russian drone hit a residential building in the Black Sea port city of Odesa, Ukraine's State Emergency Service said.

• Truth is the most ‘dangerous weapon’ against Russia, UK says as it hits back at denial over Navalny’s death
• Starmer to deploy UK warships to Arctic following Trump’s Greenland threats
• Navalny died after being poisoned with dart frog toxin by Russia, UK says
• UK and Europe depend on each other for security, Starmer says at Munich summit
• Starmer has grasped what his predecessors would not – that Britain is better off in Europe than with the US

Key Points

• Odesa hit with further drone strikes
• 'Barbaric Kremlin plot' exposed, Cooper says
• Zelensky says US too often asks Ukraine, not Russia, for concessions
• Denmark PM: Pressure from the US on Greenland is 'totally unacceptable'
• Navalny died ‘after being poisoned with dart frog toxin by Kremlin’

Recap: Cooper says new sanctions against the Russian regime could follow

New sanctions against the Russian regime could follow from Britain and its allies blaming the Kremlin for poisoning opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the Foreign Secretary has suggested.

Asked on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme what the consequences of the accusation would be, Yvette Cooper said: “We continue to look at co-ordinated action, including increasing sanctions on the Russian regime.

“As you know, we have been pursuing this as part of our response to the brutal invasion of Ukraine, where we are also coming up to the fourth anniversary of that invasion as well.

“We believe that it is the partnerships that we build abroad that make us stronger at home. It is by acting alongside our European allies, alongside allies across the world, that we do maintain that pressure on the Russian regime.”

She added: “The other thing that I would say specifically about Alexei Navalny is one of the things he said was ‘tell the truth, spread the truth’, because that is the most dangerous weapon of all.

“That was his comment about the Russian regime. He is no longer able to do that, but that is why we are continuing to do that for him, and for his widow as well.”

WATCH: Inside the vast underground bunkers ready to protect Helsinki from Putin

Some sanctions on Russia are being 'busted and circumvented', Patel says

Shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel said some sanctions on Russia are being “busted and circumvented”.

The Witham MP told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: “We need to do much more, I think, when it comes to action against Russia.

“Sanctions are actually being busted and circumvented by some of the Russian state-sponsored individuals; we know that when it comes to the war in Ukraine.

“We’ve actually got to start cutting off their financial funds that are fuelling the war in Ukraine.

“We really need to take direct action against some of the individuals in the UK. The ambassador, again, needs to be called in.

“We need to see the Government really step up in terms of its own actions when it comes to Russia.”

Dame Priti added: “There are oil refineries around the world white-labelling Russian oil. We’ve got to target those businesses and go after them.

“Those refineries are in China, they are in Turkey and they are in India. Those businesses and refineries that are taking Russian oil, white-labelling them and re-exporting them around the world, they need to be shut down.”

Truth is the most ‘dangerous weapon’ against Russia, UK says as it hits back at denial over Navalny’s death

Yvette Cooper has said truth is the most “dangerous weapon” against Russia as she hit back at Moscow’s denials that it was involved in the death of Putin’s arch-rival Alexei Navalny.

Britain and its European allies said on Saturday that the opposition leader had died after being poisoned with a lethal toxin found in poison dart frogs in South America.

After the findings were announced by Navalny’s widow Yulia Navalnaya, the foreign secretary pinned the blame squarely on the Kremlin and said only Russia had the “means, motive and opportunity” to carry out such an attack.

Read more: Truth is the most ‘dangerous weapon’ against Russia, UK says as it hits back at denial over Navalny’s death

Hillary Clinton calls Trump's position on Ukraine 'disgraceful'

Inside the vast underground bunkers ready to protect Helsinki from Putin

Carved into the bedrock deep below Helsinki is a series of underground bunkers where the entire city’s population can shelter in the case of an attack.

Annabel Grossman explores this vast network and learns how Finns plans to protect their citizens in the face of a hostile neighbour to the east.

Read the article: Inside the vast underground bunkers ready to protect Helsinki from Putin

'Barbaric Kremlin plot' exposed, Cooper says

About the UK and its Allies blaming the Kremlin for poisoning opposition leader Alexei Navalny, Yvette Cooper told Sky News this morning: “Only the Russian regime had the motive, the means and the opportunity to administer this lethal poison while he was in prison in Russia.

“They wanted to silence him because he was a critic of their regime and that is why we have exposed this barbaric Kremlin plot to do so and made sure that we have done so with evidence as well.

“The reason as well that we have done this is was one of the things that Alexei Navalny himself said that. He said ‘tell the truth, spread the truth, that is the most dangerous weapon of all’.

“The Russian regime tried to stop him doing so, so we have done so instead.”

Rubio to begin two day trip today

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to begin a two-day trip on Sunday, to bolster ties with Slovakia and Hungary.

Rubio will use the trip to discuss energy cooperation and bilateral issues, including NATO commitments, the State Department said in an announcement last week.

"These are countries that are very strong with us, very cooperative with the United States, work very closely with us, and it's a good opportunity to go see them and two countries I've never been in," Rubio told reporters before departing for Europe on Thursday.

Rubio, who in his dual role also serves as Trump’s national security adviser, will meet in Bratislava on Sunday with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who visited Trump in Florida last month. The U.S. diplomat's trip follows his participation in the Munich Security Conference over the last few days.

EU countries 'not ready to give Ukraine a concrete date for membership', says Kallis

The European Union's foreign policy chief said on Sunday that she did not feel that countries within the bloc were ready to give Ukraine a concrete date for membership.

"My feeling is that the member states are not ready to give a concrete date," Kaja Kallas told a panel at the Munich Security Conference.

"There's a lot of work to be done and then (the) priority and the urgent need is to move, and show that Ukraine is part of Europe."

'Russia is a threat to our country', Patel says

Shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel said the UK faces an “axis of authoritarianism”.

The Witham MP told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips programmed that the United States was a “natural ally” and a “partner”.

Dame Priti added: “We face major challenges on the axis of authoritarianism – that is Russia, China, North Korea and Iran.

“We can see that self-evidently in Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine. That’s a threat to our country.

“Russia is a threat to our country. We know that, we’ve experienced this over the last decade with state sponsored poisonings.”

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