US President Joe Biden on Saturday said the situation with Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny, who is currently serving a two-and-a-half prison term, is "totally unfair."
Biden was asked to comment on Navalny's detention conditions on Saturday. In response, the US president told reporters that it is "totally unfair" and "totally inappropriate."
Navalny, who has been complaining about severe back and leg pain, went on a hunger strike at the end of March, after being denied a visit by a doctor of his own choice. Olga Mikhailova, his lawyer, says the 44-year-old is suffering from two spinal hernias. He has refused the treatment offered by the prison authorities.
According to the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service, Navalny's health has been assessed as stable and satisfactory by medical professionals and he has been receiving all necessary care.
In January, Navalny returned to Moscow from Berlin after receiving medical treatment for his alleged poisoning. The 44-year-old was arrested on arrival and referred to a court, which in early February rescinded his suspended sentence in the 2014 Yves Rocher fraud case over multiple probation breaches and replaced it with a 3.5-year term behind bars. A Moscow city court reinstated the ruling but reduced the sentence to 2.5 years.
Navalny has been found guilty of defrauding the Russian subsidiary of French cosmetics firm Yves Rocher of 26 million rubles ($340,500).
Last week, Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, said that the United States is making up "stories" about Navalny's detention conditions while the US itself continues to violate the rights of prisoners.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU