World leaders are reacting to the news of the alleged death of Russian politician Aleksei Navalny. Foreign leaders unanimously claim that Navalny was killed by the Putin regime. Some of them add that the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin should bear the responsibility for this.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Navalny "paid with his life for the courage to return to Russia." British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also called the news of Navalnyʼs death "terrible news," and Navalny himself "the most ardent supporter of Russian democracy."
Latvian President Edgars Rinkevičs noted that "whatever you think of Aleksei Navalny as a politician, he was just brutally murdered by the Kremlin." His death is what should be known about the true nature of Russiaʼs modern regime, as Rinkevičs adds.
The head of the British Foreign Ministry David Cameron stated that Russian President Putin should bear responsibility for the death of Navalny.
The head of the European Council Charles Michel said that "the EU places full responsibility for this tragic death [of Navalny] on the Russian regime." After Navalnyʼs death, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg declared that "Russia must answer serious questions" and emphasized that all the facts of Navalnyʼs death must be established.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called Navalnyʼs death a grim reminder of "what Putin and his regime are." And the President of the European Parliament Roberta Matsola noted that Navalnyʼs life was "taken away by Russia."
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan called Navalnyʼs death, if confirmed, a "terrible tragedy" on NPR.
"This is a terrible tragedy, given the long, sordid history of the Russian government harming its opponents. It raises real and obvious questions about what happened here," Sullivan responded to the news of Navalnyʼs death. He refused further comments about the death of the Russian politician.
US Vice President Kamala Harris stated at the Munich Security Conference that the responsibility for Navalnyʼs death rests with the Russian authorities. However, she noted that Navalnyʼs death has yet to be confirmed.
The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky also stated that Navalny "was obviously killed by Putin."
"Like thousands of other tortured, tortured because of this one creature. Putin doesnʼt care who dies, as long as he keeps his positions. And thatʼs why he doesnʼt have to keep anything. Putin must lose everything, must lose everything and answer for what he has done," Zelensky noted.
What preceded
On February 16, 2024, the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia (FPSR) for the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District reported that Aleksei Navalny died in correctional colony No. 3. The service writes that allegedly during the walk, Navalny felt sick, he fainted. Medics arrived at the scene, but it was not possible to save him — 47-year-old Navalny died.
Meanwhile, Navalnyʼs press secretary Kira Yarmysh said that she had no confirmation of the veracity of the information from the FPSR. The lawyer-politician flies to the colony. Russian propaganda media, citing sources, write that Navalny suffered a blood clot.
- Aleksei Navalny has been in prison since February 2, 2021. Then the court sent him to the colony for 2 years and 8 months in the Yves Rocher case. In March 2022, the Lefortiv Court of Moscow sentenced Navalny to 9 years in a strict regime prison for fraud and contempt of court. Alexei Navalny was considered an opposition politician to Putin. All court cases against him in the West are considered political persecution.