Australia says Russian government “fully responsible” for Navalny’s death

Sydney (Australia), February 17 (EFE).- Australia declared this Saturday the Russian government “fully responsible for the treatment and death” of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died this Friday in a Siberian prison , where he was serving his sentence. Sentence.

“We are shocked and saddened by the death of Alexei Navalny. His resistance and opposition to oppressive regimes was inspiring to many people around the world. And we emphasize that we hold the Russian government fully responsible for his treatment and death,” Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in response to reporters, according to a statement.

Wong said he could not speculate on whether his government would take further action against Russia, citing potential new sanctions.

Australia has joined other countries, including the United States as well as the European Union, in holding Russia responsible for Navalny’s death.

United States President Joe Biden directly blamed his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for the deaths this Friday and warned that he was evaluating “various options” to respond to the incident.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose country has been waging a two-year war following an invasion by Russia, said Navalny was “clearly murdered” because of Putin.

According to the Russian penitentiary services, the Russian opposition leader died suddenly this Friday in the Arctic prison, where he had been held since last December.

Navalny, who returned to his native country in 2021 after being poisoned last year by the Federal Security Service, was serving about 30 years in prison for various crimes, according to his associates. efe

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