But scientists, spies and chemical weapons specialists have known about and feared Novichok for decades. That may have been the plan in the case of Sergei V. Skripal, a former Russian spy living in Salisbury, England. When Mr. Skripal was found barely conscious in a park in March 2018, there was no obvious reason to suspect poisoning — except that his daughter, who was visiting, experienced the same symptoms. British intelligence agencies identified the substance as Novichok and blamed Russia. And just months before the Salisbury attack, Mr. Putin said that Russia had destroyed all of its chemical weapons.

Source: New York Times January 23, 2021 09:43 UTC