Washington [US], August 4 : The United States has condemned a Russian court’s further sentencing and conviction of opposition politician and anti-corruption campaigner Aleksey Navalny to an additional 19 years in prison on unfounded charges of so-called “extremism.”
“This is an unjust conclusion to an unjust trial,” said Mathew Miller Spokesperson, US State Department.
Meanwhile, the Secretary of the US State Department, Antony Blinken too has demanded Navalny’s release, saying “Kremlin cannot silence the truth.”
"The United States strongly condemns Russia’s conviction of opposition leader Aleksey Navalny on politically motivated charges. The Kremlin cannot silence the truth. Navalny should be released," Blinken tweeted.
Russia on Friday sentenced Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny to 19 years in prison on extremism charges, CNN reported citing Russian media reports.
This is a fresh blow to the jailed blogger that comes amid an intensifying crackdown on dissent. Navalny, President Vladimir Putin's fiercest critic, is already serving sentences totalling 11-1/2 years on fraud and other charges that he says are also bogus. His political movement has been outlawed and declared "extremist".
He was accused of creating an extremist community, financing extremist activities and a number of other crimes and was found guilty at the high-security penal colony in which he has been detained.
Navalny is already in jail, serving 11 and a half years in a maximum security facility on fraud and other charges that he says were trumped up.
He and his supporters claimed that his arrest and imprisonment were politically motivated, intended to silence his criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The trial ended in June and took place behind closed doors at the IK-6 penal colony at Melekhovo, around 155 miles east of Moscow, where Navalny is being held.
This new verdict has extended Navalny's jail time period, reported CNN.
Navalny has been incarcerated in Russia since his return to the country in January 2021, on charges of violating terms of probation related to a years-old fraud case, which he dismisses as politically motivated.
The sentence was announced by the Lefortovo district court judge Margarita Kotova who announced the sentence to nine years in a "strict regime penal colony" for a criminal case of fraud and contempt of court, Sputnik News Agency reported.
The fraud case was initiated over a year ago. Navalny allegedly stole and spent over 350 million rubles (USD 3.1 million) donated to his Anti-Corruption Foundation for personal use, Sputnik reported citing investigation details.
His anti-corruption organization called, FBK, had last year been designated an "extremist organization and foreign agent" and subsequently banned by the Russian authorities.
The other charge in the case concerns Navalny allegedly insulting Judge Vera Akimova, who sentenced him to a fine of 850,000 rubles (USD 7,500) for slandering a veteran of World War 2, Ignat Artemenko, Sputnik further reported, adding that the two offences were investigated separately, but before being submitted to the court, they were combined into one case.
“The United States strongly condemns Russia’s conviction of opposition leader Aleksey Navalny on politically motivated charges. The Kremlin cannot silence the truth. Navalny should be released,” tweeted Blinken.
“For years, the Kremlin has attempted to silence Navalny and prevent his calls for transparency and accountability from reaching the Russian people. By conducting this latest trial in secret and limiting his lawyers’ access to purported evidence, Russian authorities illustrated yet again both the baselessness of their case and the lack of due process afforded to those who dare to criticize the regime,” US State Department’s statement said.
Meanwhile, Russian authorities have repeatedly sent Navalny to solitary confinement, infringed upon his access to counsel, and denied him medical care.
The United States strongly condemns Russia’s continued detention of Navalny, Vladimir Kara-Murza, and the more than 500 other designated political prisoners Russia holds. “We will continue to follow their cases closely and advocate for the release of all unjustly detained persons. We once again join Navalny’s family, colleagues, and supporters around the world in calling for his immediate release, and an end to the continued repression of independent voices in Russia,” the state added.
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