Politico | ‘Consequences’ for Russia if Alexei Navalny dies, Joe Biden’s national security official warns
- Alexei Navalny has been on a hunger strike for several weeks in prison
- Russian opposition leader’s doctor warned he could die at ‘any moment’
This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Connor O’Brien on politico.com on April 18, 2021.
“We have communicated to the Russian government that what happens to Mr Navalny in their custody is their responsibility and they will be held accountable by the international community,” Jake Sullivan said on CNN’s State of the Union.
He did not specify what action the US and its allies might take in the event of Navalny’s death.
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US and EU sanction seven Russian officials over Alexei Navalny poisoning
“In terms of the specific measures that we would undertake, we are looking at a variety of different costs that we would impose,” Sullivan said. “And I’m not going to telegraph that publicly at this point, but we have communicated that there will be consequences if Mr Navalny dies.”
Navalny was arrested upon returning to Russia in January and has been on a hunger strike for several weeks. Navalny’s doctor warned Saturday that the opposition leader “could die at any moment.”
Navalny blames Moscow for his poisoning by a nerve agent last year, which Russia has denied. The US slapped sanctions on Russia in March over Navalny’s poisoning.
Biden denounced the treatment of Navalny by Russia on Saturday.
“It’s totally, totally unfair,” Biden said, according to a White House pool report. “Totally inappropriate.”
“We actually have made the judgment that direct communication to the Russian government on this issue – including both how we see it, how our allies and partners see it, and what might unfold … should he pass away – and we have judged that rather than just make general statements publicly, the best way to deal with this issue is privately and through diplomatic channels direct to the uppermost levels of the Russian government,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan declined to discuss whether a potential summit between Biden and Putin could be scrapped in the event of Navalny’s death. Biden proposed a summit “in the coming months” in his call with Putin, according to a White House readout of their conversation.
“There isn’t currently a summit on the books,” Sullivan said. “It’s something we’re talking about and that summit would have to take place, of course, in the right circumstances in a way that could actually move the relationship forward.”
