World News

A supply chain to Russia for sanctioned chemicals, including compounds that could be used to make chemical weapons and nerve-agent poisons, has been uncovered by Spanish authorities.

EU exports of such chemicals to Russia would be certain to raise alarm bells given the links of Russian security services to nerve-agent attacks on Kremlin enemies, including the late opposition leader Aleksei Navalny.

Spanish authorities did not release details about the specific chemicals in the 13 tons they seized in the fall of 2024, or the types of chemical weapons they could help produce. But an RFE/RL investigation found that the haul included a compound that plays a key role in Russia’s war machine.