World leaders condemn Putin for death of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, with the exception of Donald Trump

Imprisoned Russian opposition leader?Alexey Navalny has died, Russian state media has reported. Navalny had been serving a 19-year sentence on charges of extremism in the?IK-3 penal colony?in Kharp, in the Yamalo-Nenets region, about 1,900km (1,200 miles) northeast of Moscow.[1]

Navalny’s wife, Yulia, at a press conference at the Munich Security Summit attended by global leaders, said that Putin and his associates should not go unpunished if the news of her husband’s death was confirmed.

Navalny aide Leonid Volkov said Russian authorities published “a confession that they killed” him in prison.

U.S. President Joe Biden said that he was “not surprised” but “outraged” at the news of Navalny’s death.

“He bravely stood up to the corruption, the violence and all the bad things the Putin government were doing,” Biden said.

“Putin is responsible for Navalny’s death. Putin is responsible. What has happened to Navalny is yet more proof of Putin’s brutality. Nobody should be fooled,” Biden said from the White House on Friday.[2]

Vice President?Kamala Harris?addressed Navalny's death during her appearance Friday at the Munich Security Conference.???

"If confirmed this would be a further sign of Putin's brutality," the vice president said. "Whatever story they tell, let us be clear: Russia?is responsible."[3]

European Council President Charles Michel said the Russian dissident “fought for the values of freedom and democracy” and made the ultimate sacrifice.

“The EU holds the Russian regime for sole responsible for this tragic death.”[4]

The Canadian foreign minister Melanie Joly said Navalny “gave his freedom in the hopes of a better, more democratic future for the Russian people”.

“Reports of his death are a painful reminder of Putin’s continued oppressive regime,” Joly added.

Jan Lipavsky, the Czech minister of foreign affairs, wrote of Russia, “It has turned into a violent state that kills people who dream of a better future, like [Boris] Nemtsov or now Navalny – imprisoned and tortured to death for standing up to Putin.”

French foreign minister Stephane Sejourne said,?“Alexei Navalny paid with his life for his resistance to a system of oppression.”

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said of Navalny, “He has now paid for this courage with his life.”

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said that Navalny’s death was “disturbing”, and “We express our heartfelt condolences and hope that full clarity will be revealed over this disturbing event.”

Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics said “Whatever your thoughts about Alexey Navalny as the politician, he was just brutally murdered by the Kremlin.”

Espen Barth Eide, the foreign minister of Norway, said “The Russian Government bears a heavy responsibility.”

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has pledged to “never forgive” those responsible for Navalny’s death in prison.

Swedish foreign minister Tobias Billstrom said, “The ruthlessness against Navalny shows again why it is necessary to continue to fight against authoritarianism.”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “This is terrible news. As the fiercest advocate for Russian democracy, Alexei Navalny demonstrated incredible courage throughout his life.”

In contrast, former U.S. President Donald Trump said nothing about Russian opposition leader Navalny’s death on Friday.

Trump instead spent the morning posting more than 20?times on his social media platform Truth Social about his criminal cases, his election poll numbers, immigrants in the U.S., his Republican presidential rival Nikki Haley, the Teamsters labor union and?Fulton County District Attorney?Fani Willis’ testimony?in Georgia.

Trump clearly had other things on his mind.[5]?????????????

Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley said, “Putin did this.”

“The same Putin who Donald Trump praises and defends. The same Trump who said: ‘In all fairness to Putin, you’re saying he killed people. I haven’t seen that’.”[6]

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) denounced Putin following news of Navalny’s death.

“As Congress debates the best path forward to support Ukraine, the United States and our partners must be using every means available to cut off Putin’s ability to fund his unprovoked war in Ukraine and aggression against the Baltic states,” Johnson said.[7]

Speaker Johnson has refused to put a foreign aid bill up on the floor of the House of Representatives for a vote due to Trump’s opposition to the U.S. giving further aid for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

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[1] Aljazeera (February 16, 2024). Russia announces death of opposition leader Alexey Navalny in prison, Aljazeera. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/16/russian-opposition-leader-alexey-navalny-has-died-in-prison-state-media

[2] Kevin Liptak (February 16, 2024). Navalny’s death puts a new spotlight on key dividing line between Trump and Biden. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2024/02/16/politics/navalny-death-biden-trump-divide/index.html

[3] Nikki Schwab (February 16, 2024). Kamala Harris blames Putin's 'brutality' for Navalny's death three years after Biden warned of 'devastating' consequences if he died in prison: VP and Blinken say 'Russia is responsible' as U.S. fury grows. Daily Mail. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13091949/us-fury-navalny-death-joe-biden-kamala-harris.html

[4] Aljazeera (February, 16,2024).‘Brutally murdered’: World reacts to Alexey Navalny’s death in prison. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/16/brutally-murdered-world-reacts-to-alexei-navalnys-death-in-prison

[5] Kevin Liptak (February 16, 2024). ?Navalny’s death puts a new spotlight on key dividing line between Trump and Biden. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2024/02/16/politics/navalny-death-biden-trump-divide/index.html

[6] Filip Timotja (February 16, 2024).?Haley blasts Trump’s praise for Putin in wake of Navalny death. The Hill. https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4472297-haley-blasts-trump-putin-praise-navalny-death/

[7] Eric Garcia (February 16, 2024). Navalny’s death has shown Speaker Mike Johnson up as a coward. ?The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/alexei-navalny-mike-johnson-ukraine-aid-b2497532.html