Moscow. Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has been detained on his arrival to Moscow from Germany. Significantly, he was undergoing treatment there after he was allegedly poisoned last year. According to the news agency’s report, the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service said in a statement on Sunday that its officials detained Navalny at Sheremetyevo International Airport for a systematic violation of the terms of the probationary period.
He was placed on probation on December 29, 2020 on a wanted list and will remain under house arrest till the court verdict.
Meanwhile, top officials of the European Union (EU) expressed concern over Navalni’s detention, according to a Tass news agency report.
European Council President Charles Mitchell said on Twitter, “Alexei Navalny’s detention upon reaching Moscow is unacceptable. I call on Russian authorities to release him immediately.”
“We call on the Russian authorities for their immediate release. We are ready to invite them to the European Parliament,” David Sasoli, president of the European Parliament, said in a tweet.
Joseph Burrell, the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, said, “Russian authorities should respect the rights of Alexei Navalny and release him immediately. Politicization of the judiciary is unacceptable.”
A diplomatic source from Brussels told Tass that, the issue would be discussed at the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting on 25 January and in the session of the European Parliament starting on Monday.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has also called for the immediate release of the opposition leader.
Pompeo said in his statement, “The detention is the latest in actions by Russian authorities attempting to silence Navalny and other opposition celebrities and independent voices.”
Pompeo said, “We urge the Russian government to provide a level electoral ground for all political parties and candidates competing in the electoral process. Alexey Navalny is not the problem. We demand his immediate and unconditional release.” . ”
Kremlin critic Navalny went into a coma on August 20, 2020 while flying from the Russian city of Tomsk to Moscow.
He was admitted to a hospital in Berlin with suspected symptoms of poisoning.
At the beginning of September, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Navalny was poisoned through a Soviet-style Novichok nerve agent.
The Russian authorities have repeatedly denied the allegations and demanded concrete evidence from Germany.
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