- The European Union (EU) has summoned the Russian representative to the EU and called for an independent international investigation into the death of Kremlin opponent Alexei Navalny.
- This is reported by the EU diplomatic service.
- Navalny’s body should also be handed over to his family immediately.
- The mother also called for Navalny’s body to be returned in an emotional video appeal.
“The EU side conveyed the EU’s outrage over the death of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny, for which President Putin and the Russian authorities ultimately bear responsibility,” it said. The Kremlin has denied involvement in Navalny’s death.
I turn to you, Vladimir Putin. The decision of the question depends only on you. Let me finally see my son.
In front of the barbed wire of the Siberian prison camp, Navalny’s mother also made an emotional video appeal calling on Putin to hand over her son’s body. «I turn to you, Vladimir Putin. The decision of the question depends only on you. “Let me finally see my son,” said Lyudmila Navalnaya.
She has been waiting for the fifth day to see Navalny, she said in the video message published on Tuesday. The politician died in the camp north of the Arctic Circle last Friday under circumstances that are still unclear. “I demand that Alexei’s body be returned immediately so that I can bury him in a humane manner,” she said.
She has not yet received the body nor has she been told where the body will be kept. After the short speech by Navalnaya, who was visibly grief-stricken, the Orthodox church on the grounds of the prison camp could be seen behind the barbed wire in the video. According to Russian Orthodox custom, the deceased are actually buried no later than the third day after their death.
This must be understood as Putin’s open reward for the torture.
To this day, the authorities have denied relatives access to Navalny’s body, despite international protests. In Russia, more than 70,000 people have already signed a call for the body to be returned to relatives. The Kremlin has not yet commented on the call and request from Navalnaya’s mother.
Open reward for torture?
Meanwhile, Putin’s simultaneous promotion of senior law enforcement officials sparked strong criticism. The deputy head of the FSIN prison authority, Valery Boyarinev, who was promoted to colonel general of the Interior Ministry, was personally responsible for the torture of Navalny in prison, wrote the director of the Anti-Corruption Fund (FBK) founded by Navalny, Ivan Zhdanov, on his Telegram channel. “You have to understand this as Putin’s open reward for the torture.”
Legend:
In Germany, people lay flowers on the ground and put up candles for the late Navalny.
Keystone/Helmut Fricke
In July 2023, during a court hearing against Navalny, an order from Boyarinew became known to restrict the opposition politician from purchasing food and daily necessities. Normally, prisoners can use their money to supplement their own meager rations at the prison store. According to Zhdanov, the newly appointed colonel general was also responsible for further harassment of Navalny.
The 53-year-old’s promotion became known on Monday with the publication of the presidential decree in the legal database. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied any connection between Navalny’s death and the promotions. These are a very common occurrence, he said.