Romney calls on the Senate to impose sanctions on Putin for Navalny poisoning

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Her. Mitt RomneyWillard (Mitt) Mitt RomneyBiden’s Minimum Wage Push Faces Uphill Fight With GOP GOP Senators Grapple With Purging Trump From Party Impeachment Trial Tests Trump’s Grip On Senate GOP MORE (R-Utah) on Tuesday called for sanctions against Russia following the arrest of opposition political leader Alexei Navalny, who was detained after returning to Moscow over the weekend.

“The corruption and lawlessness of the Putin regime remains visible to the world. Navalny’s detention is yet another blatant attempt by Putin to silence the Russian people’s struggle for freedom and democracy, ”Romney tweeted Tuesday. “The US must hold him accountable.”

The Utah senator related to legislation he and Sens. Chris van Hollen (D-Md.) Sponsorship, Marco RubioMarco Antonio Rubio Republicans in Florida Line Ranks With Trump After Capitol Siege Confirmation Hearing For Biden’s DNI Pick Postponed McConnell For The Last Time To School Trump About Political Power MORE (R-Fla.), Ben CardinBenjamin (Ben) Louis Cardin Senate Democrats suspicious of nixing filibuster Georgia keeps senate agenda in limbo Trump signs bill on memorial to fallen journalists MORE (D-Md.) And Chris CoonsChris Andrew Coons Senate Democrats suspicious of nixing filibuster Security concerns rise ahead of Biden’s inauguration Trump impeachment clashes with Biden’s agenda MORE (D-Del.) Those Kremlin officials would punish allegedly involved in Navalny’s poisoning with the Soviet-era Novichok nerve agent.

Navalny fell ill on a domestic flight to Siberia last year and was rushed to a hospital in Berlin, where he was placed in a medically induced coma. After he was released from hospital, the Russian prison service informed him that he would violate the terms of a 2014 suspended sentence unless he returned to Moscow immediately.

Officials told Navalny that if he returned to Russia later, he would be arrested. Navalny has maintained that the 2014 embezzlement conviction was politically motivated. Officials took him into custody at Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow on Sunday.

The Kremlin has repeatedly denied having poisoned Navalny, and a spokesman for the president Vladimir PutinVladimir Vladimirovich Putin Upcoming National Security Advisor Calls For Immediate Release Of Kremlin Critic Navalny Kremlin Critic Navalny Held In Moscow On Return To Russia Navalny plans to return to Russia on Sunday. rejected him as suffering from a persecution complex.

Last year, however, Navalny posed as a Kremlin intelligence officer and recorded a call in which an expert on FSB toxins seemingly confirmed that the poison had been applied to the inseam of his underpants. Russia held on to its denial after the recording was released.

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