Russian President Putin’s Statement on Navalny Prisoner Swap
Russian President Vladimir Putin disclosed that he had approved a prisoner swap involving Alexei Navalny before the opposition leader’s death in an Arctic prison last month.
Putin’s Approval of Navalny Prisoner Swap
Putin mentioned that unnamed individuals proposed releasing Navalny in exchange for a swap with the West just days before his passing.
“The person who spoke to me hadn’t finished his sentence, and I said I agree. But, unfortunately, what happened happened,” Putin expressed in his initial response to Navalny’s demise, labeling it a “sad event”.
“I agreed under one condition: we swap him, and he doesn’t come back. But such is life,” Putin remarked. “When things like that happen you cannot do anything about it – that’s life.”
Navalny’s Death and International Reactions
Alexei Navalny passed away in a Russian prison on February 16, coinciding with the Munich Security Conference and triggering swift condemnation from Western nations.
His demise also aligned with discussions in the US Capitol Hill regarding funding for Ukraine’s conflict against Russia, resulting in the approval of a $60 billion war aid package to Ukraine.
Accusations and Claims
Navalny’s allies have accused Putin of involvement in a supposed plot to harm Navalny in jail to obstruct a potential prisoner exchange where Navalny would have been swapped for a Russian prisoner held in Germany.
Contrarily, Russia’s foreign intelligence chief, Sergei Naryshkin, asserted that Navalny’s death was due to “natural causes”.