He appeared this Thursday, February 15, in relatively good shape from his Arctic prison, smiling and joking about his situation, as shown by this video broadcast by the Russian independent media Sota. vision. But Alexeï Navalny died this Friday, February 16, announced the Russian prison services, a shock for the whole world.
On X (ex-Twitter), Emmanuel Macron accused Russia of “sentenced to death” “free spirits”. The head of French diplomacy Stéphane Séjourné also reacted shortly after the announcement. “Alexeï Navalny paid with his life for his resistance to a system of oppression. His death in a penal colony reminds us of the reality of Vladimir Putin’s regime. To his family, his loved ones and the Russian people, France presents its condolences,” expressed on (ex-Twitter) the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Very quickly, the emotion of this news was reported to a culprit: Russian President Vladimir Putin. The European Union, through the President of the European Council Charles Michel, declared that it held “the Russian regime” “solely responsible for the tragic death” of Navalny. “Putin fears nothing other than dissent from his own people. This is a grim reminder of what Putin and his regime are,” reacted the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who said she was “deeply troubled and saddened” by the death of Alexeï Navalny.
Similar reaction in Poland, through its Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski: “This man was guilty of defying Vladimir Putin […] He was put in prison, where he remained in appalling conditions. Vladimir Putin is responsible for all this,” he told AFP. Or even in Spain, where Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he was “upset” by the death of Navalny, “unjustly imprisoned by the regime of Putin for his defense of human rights and democracy.
The United States seeks confirmation to “decide on the course of action”
The United States also reacted firmly. The head of diplomacy Antony Blinken thus affirmed that “Russia is responsible” for the situation which led to the death of Alexeï Navalny and underlined “the weakness and corruption” of Vladimir Putin’s system. American Vice President Kamala Harris, for her part, said that Navalny’s death was a “sign of Putin’s brutality.”
If American President Joe Biden has not yet reacted officially, he sent a clear message to Vladimir Putin in June 2021, affirming that “the consequences would be devastating for Russia” in the event of Navalny’s death. US security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Friday that Washington was seeking to confirm the information on its side before “deciding on the course of action.”
“I am deeply saddened and concerned […] All the facts must be established and Russia must answer serious questions” following this death, warned NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, on the sidelines of the Security Conference in Munich.
Finally, if Alexeï Navalny was the Kremlin’s number 1 enemy, there is no doubt that Volodymyr Zelensky is number 2. The Ukrainian president also quickly reacted to the death of the Russian opponent, during a joint press conference with the Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin. “It is obvious to me that (Alexei Navalny) was killed like thousands of others who were tortured to death because of one person, Putin, who does not care who dies as long as he keeps his position,” Zelensky said, adding that Putin “will have to be held accountable for his crimes.”