[ad_1]
JUST BEFORE: A man claiming to be a copilot on the plane posted this photo on his Instagram profile before departure. “Good morning, Alexei,” it says in the text. In the photo, Navalny drinks from a plastic cup. According to his secretary, the only thing he ate this morning was a cup of tea. Photo: Private
The German government says there is “unequivocal evidence” that Alexei Navalny was poisoned by the Novitsjok neurotoxin. Norway strongly condemns the attack.
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny (44) was exposed to a Novitsjok-type nerve agent, the German government reports on its website.
– A toxicological test of samples from Alexei Navalny provides clear evidence of a chemical neurotoxin from the Novitsjok group, writes the German government.
Søreide: – Deeply disturbing
– Norway strongly condemns the attack, says Chancellor Ine Eriksen Søreide (H) to VG.
“The news that prominent Russian opposition politician and corruption hunter Alexei Navalny has been poisoned with a nerve agent is deeply disturbing,” the foreign minister said.
Søreide adds that Norway has full confidence in the investigation and assessments of the German authorities in this case.
“The Russian authorities now have a great responsibility to carry out a credible and thorough investigation of the nerve agent attack,” the foreign minister said.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg demands a response from Russia and condemns the poison attack on Russian regime critic Alexei Navalny, according to NTB.
– I strongly condemn the use of a military grade neurotoxin. This makes it even more urgent for Russia to conduct a full and open investigation, writes Stoltenberg. Twitter.
– We will consult Germany and all NATO allies on the implications, he continues.
Merkel: assassination attempt
Norway will continue to maintain close contact with the German authorities, European allies and partners.
Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel calls the attack an assassination attempt. She is waiting for an explanation from Russia, according to Reuters.
Merkel adds that Germany will consult her allies in NATO in order to arrive at a response after the incident.
The EU and NATO also condemn the poison attack.
GUARD: German police at the entrance to the Charité hospital in Berlin, where Alexei Navalny has been treated. Photo: Markus Schreiber / AP
– States and terrorists
– For Russians who know the history of their country, about how the authorities behave towards those who criticize them, this news came as expected, says Polina Kostyleva, one of Navalny’s closest associates, to VG.
– The state is a terrorist against those who have a dissenting opinion, says Kostyleva.
Condemn the attack
The German government calls the attack “a sensational incident”.
“The German government condemns this attack in the strongest possible way,” the statement said.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Wednesday called on Russia to investigate the nerve agent attack on Alexei Navalny.
Very strong nerve agent
“This makes it urgent that those behind Russia be identified and held accountable,” the foreign minister said, according to Reuters.
Maas has called Russia an ambassador to Germany about the carpet, reports NTB.
Novitsjok is a series of very powerful neurotoxins developed in the Soviet Union and Russia in the years 1971-1993. Novitsjok is lethal even in very low concentrations.
Doctors in Omsk, where Navalny was first treated, said they found no toxins in the regime critic’s samples.
POLITICIAN: Opposition politician Alexei Navalny during a demonstration in Moscow in February this year. Photograph: Shamil Zhumatov / X00499
Steffen Seibert, a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Angela Merkel, claims that the investigations were carried out in a special military laboratory, NTB writes.
The Russian attorney general asked for the results of Navalny’s tests at the German hospital on Tuesday, rbc.ru wrote.
– No, replies Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. RIA Novostis they question whether the Russians have received this information from the German side.
Russia: will cooperate
President Putin’s press secretary says Russia is interested in full cooperation with Germany and the exchange of information on the case.
– At the moment we cannot react competently to the German statements, says Dmitry Peskov according to the Ria Novosti news agency.
Putin’s spokesman notes that a whole complex of tests was carried out in Russia before Navalny was transported to Berlin, with no toxic substances being detected.
OPPONENT: Navalny has been one of Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critics for many years. Here he is in Moscow before the 2018 elections. Photo: Ole Kristian Strøm / VG
Famous critic of Putin
Alexei Navalny has been one of Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critics for many years. He became seriously ill on a plane in Siberia about a week ago.
He was admitted to a hospital in Omsk, Russia, but then flew to Berlin. He is still in a coma in a city hospital, but his condition is said to be stable and has improved somewhat.
According to Reuters on Wednesday, the Charité hospital in Berlin claims they expect a long period of illness. Navalny is on a ventilator in the intensive care unit.
Navalny’s collaborator Polina Kostyleva compares him to Boris Nemtsov, who was the leader of the opposition until he was shot and killed in 2015.
“In the same way that they did not want the charismatic Nemtsov, who had the ability to create an alternative to Putin, Navalny has now become this alternative,” says Kostyleva.
EMPLOYEE: Polina Kostyleva led Alexei Navalny’s election campaign in St. Petersburg in 2017. Photo: Ole Kristian Strøm / VG
It also withdraws the massive protests against the dictator in Belarus.
“Putin has seen the threat through the demonstrations against Lukashenko and fears the same could happen here in Russia,” Kostyleva said.
Accuse the Russian state
He adds that poisoning is not new in Russia.
– Only the state can use Novitsjok. It’s out of the question, writes another of Nevalny’s close associates, Ivan Zhdanov, on Twitter, according to NTB.
It points to the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the GRU military intelligence service.
Zhidanov is the director of the Nevalny Anti-Corruption Foundation.
I think it’s wrong
– I think this is all wrong, says Russian military expert Igor Nikulin to the Kremlin-controlled media Sputnik.
– It is very difficult to poison a person with Novitsjok without dying. This is an extremely toxic substance and Navalny did not receive immediate help. I don’t think they can prove this, says Nikulin.
SCENE: Police in full protective gear set up a tent on the park bench where Sergej Skripal and his daughter were found unconscious in Salisbury, England, in March 2018. Photo: BEN STANSALL / AFP
Just as Skripal was poisoned with
It was the same type of nerve agent that retired Russian intelligence officer Sergei Skripal (69) and his daughter Julia (36) were poisoned with in England on March 4, 2018.
British police believe that two men working for the Russian security service GRU were behind the attack. They both survived, but an alien woman died.
It was the first known case in which Novitsjok is used.
The poison causes the heart to slow down and the airways to narrow, leading to death from suffocation, Professor Gary Stephens of the University of Reading told Reuters.
VG discount codes
A business collaboration with kickback.no
[ad_2]
