Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny attends a rally to mark the 5th anniversary of the murder of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov and to protest proposed changes to the constitution in Moscow, Russia, on February 29, 2020.
Shamil Zhumatov | Reuters
WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has condemned the “continued use of harsh tactics” by the Russian authorities against peaceful protesters who took to the streets across Russia on Sunday to call for the release of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
For the second weekend in a row, tens of thousands gathered across the country in an effort to raise awareness of Navalny, a vocal critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was detained by authorities earlier this month.
According to a control group, more than 4,500 people were detained by the Russian authorities for participating in the protests.
“We renew our call to Russia to release those detained for exercising their human rights, including Aleksey Navalny,” Blinken wrote in a tweet.
Last year, Navalny was medically evacuated from a Russian hospital to Germany after becoming ill after reports that something had been added to his tea. Russian doctors who treated Navalny denied that the Kremlin critic had been poisoned and blamed his comatose condition on low blood sugar.
In September, the German government said the 44-year-old Russian dissident had been poisoned by a chemical nerve agent, describing the toxicology report as “unequivocal evidence”. The nerve agent was in the Novichok family, which was developed by the Soviet Union.
The Kremlin has repeatedly denied any role in the poisoning of Navalny.
Earlier this month, Navalny flew to Russia from Berlin, Germany, where he has recovered nearly half a year since he was poisoned last summer. He was arrested at passport control.
Russian authorities had issued a warrant for Navalny’s arrest, claiming that he violated the terms of a three-and-a-half-year suspended sentence he received in 2014 for embezzlement.
“Mr. Navalny should be released immediately, and the perpetrators of the outrageous attack on his life held accountable,” Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, wrote on Twitter shortly after the arrest.
Last week, Blinken expressed “deep concern” about the treatment of Navalny and the wider human rights situation in Russia.
“I continue to notice how concerned and perhaps even scared the Russian government seems to be one man, Mr. Navalny,” Blinken said at a press conference on Wednesday.
Recently confirmed United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken addresses reporters at his first press conference at the State Department in Washington, January 27, 2021.
Carlos Barria | Reuters
“Across the board, as the President has said, we are looking at all these actions that are of great concern to us, be it the treatment of Mr. Navalny and especially the apparent use of a chemical weapon in an attempt to kill him. , ” added the top diplomat in the country.
Blinken also said on Wednesday that the Biden administration was reviewing the hack on SolarWinds, reports of Russia’s bounties on US troops in Afghanistan and possible election interference.
Biden has previously vowed to “work with our allies and partners to hold Putin’s regime accountable for his crimes”. He has also previously accused the Trump administration of not taking Moscow harshly enough.