Revealed: The battle-hardened Spetsnaz Brigade special forces unit that trained Skripal 'hitman'

The special forces brigade in which Anatoliy Chepiga served carried out secret missions in Ukraine for which it is believed he was awarded Russia’s highest honour. Colonel Chepiga - the Salisbury nerve agent assassin travelling under the false identity Ruslan Boshirov - had graduated in 2001 from his military academy in far eastern Russia on the Chinese border, 5,000 miles and a five-day train journey from Moscow.