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Dressed in polka dot linen and surrounded by his family, Alexei Navalny looks directly into the camera. Instagram post It is Navalny’s first message since he collapsed aboard a plane in Siberia on August 20, according to several expert analyzes as a result of acute poisoning with a deadly Soviet-derived neurotoxin: novitjok.
Soon after, he was flown to Berlin, where he is now being cared for.
“Hi, I’m Navalny,” says the legend, “I miss you. I still can’t do almost anything, but yesterday I was able to breathe alone all day for the first time.”
Kremlin: don’t mix in Nord Stream
The image has made headlines around the world on Wednesday. Even in Russia, although from a different angle. The Kremlin – friendly tabloid Komsomolskoye Pravda write in an article that Navalny recovered surprisingly quickly and questions how bad he was.
The international response to the Navalny poisoning has likely been greater than the Kremlin expected, according to many observers. Not least the German indications to halt construction of the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed on Wednesday that the construction should not be linked to Navalny.
– You have to stop mentioning it in a politicized context, he says. according to the Reuters news agency.
Bildt: “Massive” Foreign Policy Award
According to former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt, the reaction of German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been very strong. It also comes from the key person in an increasingly serious dialogue between the EU and Russia, according to Bildt, who anticipates major consequences for Russia.
– The foreign policy price for this is huge, he says on tonight’s episode of SVT Utrikesbyrån.
Navalny has long been a nail in the coffin of Russian power, as an opposition politician and especially as an anti-corruption activist. In online videos, he examines rich and powerful Russians, not least politicians, on a sour note. And while few russians say who would vote for him in an election, his corruption investigation strikes a chord in a country where mold and bribery are common.
This week, SVT’s Foreign Ministry deals with poison murders and poisonings related to Russia. See the full program here.
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