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- Symptoms of poisoning in seriously ill Kremlin critic Alexej Navalny are on the wane, according to a report from the Berlin Charité.
- Navalny is therefore not in serious danger. But she is still in an artificial coma in the intensive care unit.
- The government critic was airlifted to Germany after severe symptoms of poisoning appeared a good week ago.
“His state of health remains serious without any acute danger to his life,” the doctors explained. “As before, the possible long-term consequences of severe poisoning for the patient are not foreseeable.”
Merkel wants to hold the EU accountable
Meanwhile, Chancellor Angela Merkel is seeking a European response to the case. “It is not a German problem, even if Germany has accepted Mr Navalny,” the chancellor said at her summer press conference in Berlin. First, more education is needed. Merkel referred to the international reaction to the 2018 attack on Sergej Skripal in Britain, for which Russia is blamed. Later, several European states expelled the Russian diplomats.
Merkel refused to link the case to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project. “I do not consider it appropriate to combine this economically driven project with the Navalny issue,” the chancellor said. He wants the pipe to be finished. Merkel also criticized US threats of sanctions aimed at preventing the building from being completed.
The substance found will be further investigated.
Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also stated that they would await the results of the clarifications. “The Chancellor indicates that there should be more investigations, also with respect to the merits.” It examines whether conclusions can be drawn from its nature where it comes from. “We are awaiting the results of the investigation,” Maas said.
The “Spiegel” reported that the Charité had asked for help from the armed forces, which runs an institute for pharmacology and toxicology in Munich. The request indicated that the experts assumed a chemical warfare agent. A spokesman for the Ministry of Defense in Berlin simply stated that various Bundeswehr agencies had been or were still involved in the Navalny case. He could not confirm the details.
Russia suspects
La Charité declined to comment on the report. She said the treating doctors were in close contact with Navalny’s wife. “According to his wife, the Charité assumes that public communication about the state of health is in his favor.”
Navalny collapsed a week ago on a domestic flight in Russia and was flown to Germany on Saturday. German doctors found poisoning. Russia is blamed for several poison attacks on Kremlin critics.
