- The US has threatened Russia with sanctions and other consequences if Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny dies in state prison.
- Last month, Navalny said he was going to go on hunger strike in prison until he could see a doctor.
- Navalny is recovering after being poisoned by a Novichok nerve agent in Russia.
- See more stories on Insider’s business page.
Russia will face heavy penalties such as sanctions if Alexei Navalny, a top critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, dies in prison, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday.
“We have told the Russian government that what is happening to Mr Navalny in their oversight is their responsibility and that they will be held accountable by the international community,” Sullivan said in an interview with CNN’s State of the Union. ” said.
“In terms of the specific measures we would take, we are looking at different costs that we would impose, and I am not going to telegraph it publicly at the moment,” he added. “But we have said that it will have consequences if Mr. Navalny dies. ‘
—State of the Union (@CNNSotu) 18 April 2021
Navalny is serving a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence for missing parole hearings while recovering in Germany after being poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent in Russia.
Last month, Navalny said he was going to go on hunger strike in prison until he was allowed to go to the doctor.
“The right to invite a specialist for examination and consultation exists for every convict. Even for me, despite the fact that I am not guilty,” he said on Twitter. “Therefore, I urge a doctor to see me, and until that happens, I will go on a hunger strike.”
In a more detailed Instagram post, Navalny said he experienced pain in his back and that he lost sensitivity in parts of his right leg and most of his left leg.
Doctors sounded the alarm and urgently asked to see him. They warned prison officials that if Navalny did not receive proper medical care and treatment immediately, he could die at any moment.
At least four doctors have so far requested to see him. Navalny’s personal physician, Anastasia Vasilyeva, wrote to prison officials that his potassium levels were dangerously high, insider Sinéad Baker reported, which could lead to devastating heart issues.
“Our patient can die at any moment,” said cardiologist Yaroslav Ashikhmin, adding that “deadly arrhythmias can develop at any moment.”
Russian officials said prison authorities offered Navalny medical care, but he turned it down because he wanted to see a doctor of his choice.
President Joe Biden this weekend denounced the conditions under which Navalny was imprisoned in Russia, saying it was “completely inappropriate.”
“It’s completely unfair,” Biden said.
Navalny allies are planning mass street protests this Wednesday, Reuters reported. The protests, which the Russian authorities have staged in the past, will take place on the same day that Putin is expected to hold an annual state of the nation address, Reuters said.
Do you have a news tip? Contact this reporter at [email protected]