US intelligence agencies believe that although the Russian president is ultimately responsible for the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, he did not directly order his assassination in February, according to the Wall Street Journal.
This conclusion, based on both classified intelligence and an analysis of public facts, raises new questions about Navalny’s death in a remote Arctic prison camp, which led to a new round of sanctions against Russia of President Vladimir Putin.
Among these developments was the death of the opposition leader in mid-February, which overshadowed Putin’s re-election a month later.
The CIA and other U.S. intelligence agencies believe Putin probably did not order the death “at that time,” although that does not absolve him of ultimate responsibility for Navalny’s fate, officials said. sources close to the file to the newspaper.
European officials briefed on the publication were skeptical that the 47-year-old dissident could have been attacked without Putin’s prior knowledge, given the strict constraints in force in today’s Russia, the newspaper said.
” Do not mistake yourself. Putin is responsible for Navalny’s death,” US President Joe Biden said after news of the death surfaced.
Russia’s prison service said Navalny collapsed on Feb. 16 while walking around the prison compound and that attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful.
The opposition leader appeared relatively healthy and in good spirits when he was seen in a video just a day ago. The previous week, high-level discussions about a possible prisoner exchange involving Navalny were underway.
Navalny was serving a 19-year prison sentence for charges he and his supporters said were fabricated. Previously, he survived a poisoning that investigators in the United States and other countries blamed on the Kremlin.
Moscow has denied responsibility for the poisoning or death. Several prominent Kremlin opponents have died, been imprisoned or forced into exile in recent years. Contacted by AFP, the United States National Security Council declined to comment on the press report.
