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The son of a Russian defector who died in the UK 17 years ago claims his father was murdered and has called on British authorities to investigate his death.

Vladimir Pasechnik was a Soviet microbiologist who defected to Britain in 1989 when he warned that Russia's germ warfare programme was 10 times greater than thought.

He went on to work at the microbiological research centre at Porton Down, near Salisbury, Wiltshire, and died in 2001 aged 64.

While Mr Pasechnik's official cause of death was given as a stroke, his son, Nikita, suspected foul play and espionage were behind it.

He wants the government to take another look at his father's death following the poisoning of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal , 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, in Salisbury.

(Image: GrahamHunt/BNPS)

(Image: AFP)

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Russia has denied allegations that it may have been involved in Sunday's poisoning, which has left the father and daughter critically ill in hospital.

Nikita, 53, called for a new investigation into his father's death after MP Yvette Cooper asked in Parliament for Home Secretary Amber Rudd to launch an inquiry into 14 suspicious deaths in recent years which are possibly connected to Russian intelligence services.

Mr Pasechnik's death is not listed among these cases.

(Image: GrahamHunt/BNPS)

His son slammed Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson's threat that British dignitaries and officials may boycott the football World Cup in Russia this summer as "weak", saying Russian President Vladimir Putin "would be laughing at him".

Nikita, who lives in Bridport, Dorset, and works as an IT specialist, said: "Of course it is important that every case is investigated, including my father's.

"My father ruined the whole industry of biological weapons in Russia when he escaped to the UK and told the government and Margaret Thatcher (about Russia's programme).

(Image: GrahamHunt/BNPS)

"My father was always scared and told me the KGB might kill him.

"He understood how serious the threat to him was and told me several times the story of a Bulgarian diplomat who was killed by an umbrella."

He added: "Officially his cause of death was a stroke but I spoke to doctors and they said his brain was severely damaged in different areas and they had never seen a stroke like it - it was as if he had several strokes simultaneously.

"They didn't understand the reason for the stroke.

(Image: GrahamHunt/BNPS)

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"I spoke to specialists in different countries and they confirmed certain chemical substances could cause a stroke by causing the blood to go thick and creating a clot.

"I see similarities between my father and what has happened in Salisbury. My father was at home and he had a severe headache and felt dizzy.

"He took painkillers and tried to drive to his office but turned back then smashed his side mirror driving onto the garage before collapsing in the home.

"My mother was there and they rushed him to hospital but he died several weeks later. There was never a proper investigation into his death.

"It is very difficult to say how or where it happened but I believe my father was poisoned."

(Image: Reuters)

Nikita pointed to the cases of Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko, who died after being poisoned in London in 2006, and Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky.

Mr Litvinenko, 43, died weeks after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium-210 at London's Millennium Hotel.

A public inquiry concluded in 2016 that the killing of the outspoken critic of Vladimir Putin had "probably" been carried out with the approval of the Russian president

Russia denied any involvement in the dissident's death.

(Image: Getty)

(Image: Getty)

Mr Berezovsky, who was living in exile in the UK after falling out with Putin, died in 2013 in mysterious circumstances.

The body of the ex-Kremlin insider was discovered slumped at his ex-wife's luxury Berkshire home, with a ligature wound to his neck.

An inquest heard that he was discovered lying on the bathroom floor. A piece of the same material around his throat was tied on to the shower rail above him, indicating he apparently hanged from the rail.

Police initially investigated after concern that there may have been foul play, but detectives subsequently said there was no sign of a struggle.

However, police told a coroner they could not rule out murder.

(Image: PA)

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The coroner, Peter Bedford, returned an open verdict in March 2014 after hearing conflicting expert evidence about how Mr Berezovsky was found hanged.

He said he could not prove beyond all reasonable doubt that the 67-year-old either took his own life or was unlawfully killed.

Nikita, meanwhile, said he fears the Russian president, but he must speak out over his father's death and allegations he was murdered.

He said: "The Russian authorities are very dangerous, they are very arrogant and they believe they can threaten anybody.

"I was disappointed with Boris Johnson's response that they may not send dignitaries to the World Cup.

"Putin will be laughing at such a weak response."