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- Despite international criticism, the Russian judiciary wants to imprison the Kremlin’s opponent, Alexei Navalny, for years.
- A Moscow court ruled today on the application of the prison system to convert the probation sentence imposed in 2014 into a real prison sentence.
- Nawalny supporters called again for demonstrations across the country. More than 120 of his supporters have already been arrested in front of the court.
The process has already started. The Russian criminal system demands a three and a half year prison term and a fine of 500,000 rubles (5,400 euros) for Navalny in court, according to Russian agencies from the courtroom.
Alexej Navalny is currently serving a 30-day prison sentence. The current trial concerns the fact that a Russian court sentenced him to a suspended prison term for fraud long ago.
The indictment of the judiciary: When the Kremlin critic recovered from a poison attack in Germany, it is said that he did not report to the Russian authorities as prescribed. Therefore, the Russian penal system had sought him out and arrested him on January 17 after landing in Moscow.
Navalny faces a host of other lawsuits and many years in prison. The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office supports the commutation of the sentence. Nawalny’s supporters see it differently: they called for solidarity demonstrations in court and protests across the country to secure Nawalny’s release. The trial in the Moscow Municipal Court is under an unprecedented police presence.
International criticism is strong
Alexei Navalny barely survived an assassination attempt with chemical warfare agent Novichok in Siberia in August. The 44-year-old blames Putin and agents of the Russian national secret service FSB for the attack. After his return to Russia, Navalny now sees the trial as the Kremlin’s revenge for not dying.
The procedure had caused international horror. German Justice Minister Christine Lambrecht said the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the criminal process against Navalny at the time was arbitrary. “Instead of persecuting, repressing and criminalizing Navalny and his supporters, criminal investigations must finally begin to solve the attack against him,” he demanded.
New sanctions are being discussed
Russia refuses to investigate because it sees no evidence of poisoning. Several western laboratories had proven Novitschok’s traces beyond doubt. Therefore, the EU has imposed sanctions on senior Russian officials. In light of the threat of long-term incarceration, Nawalny’s team has called on the EU and the United States to impose more sanctions. This is already being discussed at EU level.
Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde is expected to hold talks with her Russian colleague Sergei Lavrov in Moscow on Tuesday. He also chairs the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). At the end of the week, Lavrov will meet in Moscow with the representative of EU Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, who had severely condemned the repression against Navalny and those who think otherwise.
