Four days after the death of Vladimir Putin's main opponent, Paris is raising its voice.
“France holds the Russian authorities fully responsible for the death of Alexeï Navalny, whose detention conditions had deteriorated significantly since his transfer to a penal colony,” declared the Foreign Affairs spokesperson on Tuesday.
It calls for "an independent and thorough investigation to be conducted to shed full light on this tragic event" and calls for "the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners in Russia and expresses in particular its deep concern over the critical health condition of opponent Vladimir Kara-Mourza.
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Alexeï Navalny, who was serving a 19-year prison sentence for “extremism” in a camp in the Russian Arctic, died on February 16 in detention.
Citing ongoing forensic procedures, Russian authorities have so far refused to return the body to his family, so his supporters consider that the Russian regime is trying to cover up a murder.
Accusations also rejected by the Kremlin.