The demise of Alexei Navalny eliminates the most significant adversary of President Vladimir Putin, and delivers a clear message about the perils of opposing the Russian leader’s progressively authoritarian regime.
From the moment he gained global recognition during the large-scale pro-democracy demonstrations in Russia in 2011-2012, it was clear to both the Kremlin and Putin’s detractors that Navalny, with his charisma and wit, had the capacity to pose a substantial political threat.
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny's death on Feb. 16 in jail adds to a string of murders and suspicious deaths among critics of Putin.
Over 20 adversaries have been killed or died under mysterious circumstances since Putin rose to power in 1999: https://t.co/ci1wmKuKrG pic.twitter.com/TbZj3578fA
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) February 17, 2024
It was unmistakably apparent that Navalny was skating on thin ice following his return to Russia in early 2021, despite the imminent threats of incarceration.
The passing of Navalny was verified in an “official communication” to his mother, as announced by his spokesperson, Kira Yarmysh, on the X social media platform and through a video declaration on Saturday.
Alexei Navalny's spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh confirmed the prominent Russian opposition leader's death, citing official notice given to his mother Lydumila https://t.co/jgNmEjlf7L pic.twitter.com/IFo9QbkraX
— Reuters (@Reuters) February 17, 2024
The destiny of the dissident is intertwined with a tragic airplane accident that claimed the life of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner mercenary group, last year. Prigozhin, who had become an icon among Russian nationalists due to his involvement in the Ukraine conflict, was declared dead in August. This occurred precisely two months after he spearheaded a rebellion against the leadership of the Defense Ministry, which escalated into the most significant challenge to Putin’s rule of nearly twenty-five years.
These two events resulted in the elimination of individuals who were openly against Putin, albeit from contrasting viewpoints. This alone conveys a potent message to both Russians and the global community as we approach the second anniversary of Putin’s comprehensive invasion of Ukraine. This act incited a series of sanctions and led the United States and its allies to provide arms to Kyiv.
Opposition leader Alexei Navalny, one of President Putin’s most outspoken critics, died in a Russian prison. Here's how he ended up in a remote Arctic penal colony: pic.twitter.com/PG4BfBv8MP
— DW News (@dwnews) February 18, 2024
The announcement of Navalny’s demise came just before the commencement of the official campaign for the presidential election scheduled for March 17, where Putin is vying for his fifth term. Swiftly, government officials pointed fingers at the Kremlin, with some directly attributing blame to Putin. The ex-KGB officer is on track to match the record tenure of Josef Stalin, the infamous Soviet despot, as the leader in Moscow.
The Russian authorities have not yet revealed the cause of Navalny’s death, stating that he felt ill following a walk and subsequently lost consciousness. Interestingly, just a day prior, he was seen on a video from prison during a court hearing, where he was jovially interacting with officials.
Putin exhibited such animosity towards Navalny that he refrained from uttering his name even when journalists inquired about the activist, a practice also adopted by Dmitry Peskov, the spokesperson for the Kremlin. Russian state television, which had prohibited any reference to Navalny for years, momentarily reported his passing.
Given the already strained ties between Russia and the West due to Putin’s assault on Ukraine on February 24, 2022, it remains uncertain whether the US and Europe’s denunciation of Navalny’s demise will translate into more tangible sanctions against the Kremlin.
Navalny’s friends and allies were in a state of constant concern for his well-being in jail, as the Kremlin embarked on its most severe suppression of disagreement in years to quell opposition to the conflict.
The anxiety heightened when Navalny, aged 47, was relocated to a distant Arctic penal colony, IK-3, in the latter part of December from a detention center near Moscow. In his final post on X, previously known as Twitter, dated February 14, he disclosed that he had been condemned to spend 15 days in a disciplinary cell, marking the fourth such instance since his arrival there.
From his prison cell, he had been promoting a countrywide demonstration during the presidential election via social media, urging individuals to reach polling stations precisely at noon to cast their votes against Putin. Additionally, Navalny had expressed strong disapproval of the Ukraine invasion.
His demise marks the most recent event in a series of occurrences involving prominent detractors of the Kremlin.
In February 2015, Boris Nemtsov, who once served as a deputy prime minister, met a tragic end through an assassination that occurred in Moscow, just a stone’s throw away from the walls of the Kremlin. Similarly, Anna Politkovskaya, a journalist known for her activism, was fatally shot in the elevator of her apartment building in Moscow. The incident coincidentally took place on Putin’s birthday in October 2006.
Vladimir Kara-Murza, a notable figure in the opposition, was handed a 25-year sentence for treason in April, following his criticism of Ukraine’s invasion. He has previously leveled accusations against the Russian authorities, claiming that they have poisoned him on two separate occasions.
During his initial years, Navalny stirred up controversy by establishing connections with nationalist factions that held adversarial views towards the Kremlin, foreigners, and minorities. He defended these associations by stating his intent to form a wide-ranging alliance against Putin. However, this strategy led to a lingering sense of distrust among many liberal activists.
Navalny, known for his fearlessness and adept use of the Internet, amassed a substantial online audience in Russia. He achieved this through his investigative work that unveiled corruption within state corporations and among high-ranking officials. Utilizing social media posts, he managed to circumvent the information blackout imposed by state television. In January 2021, he stirred up a significant controversy by releasing a video that revealed an opulent palace on the Black Sea, worth $1.3 billion, which he claimed was constructed for Putin.
The video, which garnered over 129 million views on YouTube, was made public following Navalny’s detention upon his return to Russia from Germany. He had been in Germany for treatment after a 2020 nerve-agent poisoning incident in Siberia, for which he and Western countries held the Kremlin responsible. However, Russia refuted any involvement in the incident.
In the same year, Russia declared Navalny’s extensive network of campaign organizations as “extremist,” compelling activists to dissolve their groups and causing many to seek refuge overseas. Navalny’s health was deteriorating while in jail, and he appeared frail during court proceedings due to a 24-day hunger strike he undertook to insist on improved medical treatment.
The destiny of the opposition leader and his group, predominantly composed of young professionals, stood in sharp contrast to the initial hopefulness of the large-scale demonstrations in 2011-2012 opposing Putin’s presidential comeback, replacing Dmitry Medvedev. Despite the subsequent crackdown by the Kremlin, their resolve remained undiminished.
In a surprising turn of events, Navalny was permitted to participate in the Moscow mayoral elections in September 2013, after extensive protests advocating for his release from custody. He nearly managed to push for a second round of voting against Sergei Sobyanin, the current ally of Putin. Navalny secured 27% of the votes, while Sobyanin received 51%.
That marked the final occasion Navalny was allowed to compete. When he initiated a campaign to oppose Putin in the 2018 presidential race, authorities excluded him from the ballot due to a fraud conviction. This conviction, criticized as politically driven by Navalny, the US, and the European Union, became the reason for his disqualification.
“Navalny was essentially killed when he was arrested years ago,” said Thad Troy, managing director of Crumpton Global and a former CIA officer in Moscow. “It’s an inevitable next step for Putin to strengthen his hold over Russia.”
While incarcerated, Navalny maintained his resistance against Putin. In a revelation that took many of his supporters aback, he shared that he had found faith in God following years of atheism.
“Our country is built on injustice. But tens of millions of people want the truth,” he told a court during a failed 2021 appeal hearing. “And sooner or later they’ll get it.”
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