The US intelligence services concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin “probably” did not order the death of opponent Alexei Navalny “at that time”, that is, in February.
The information was released this Saturday by Wall Street Journalwhich cites anonymous sources knowledgeable on the subject, and which says, however, that this does not mean that Putin is not responsible for the death in prison of the 47-year-old opponent – given that he had been a target of the Russian authorities for years, he was detained based on politically motivated charges and was poisoned in 2020.
The Kremlin denied any responsibility (both in Navalny’s death and the poisoning), despite the opponent’s family and supporters pointing the finger at Putin. Immediately, the USA and the European Union also blamed the Russian president – the Europeans, who had already had access to information from the North American secret services, remained “skeptical”.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Saturday that he had seen the American newspaper’s article, claiming that it contained “empty speculation”. Peskov also told journalists who asked him about the news: “I saw the material and I would not say that it is high-quality material that deserves attention.”
Putin said at the time that he was “saddened” by Navalny’s death, noting that he was prepared to include him in a prisoner exchange with the West.
With agencies
