White House promises ‘major sanctions’ on Russia over Alexei Navalny’s death

The unveiling of the new measures will coincide with the 2-year anniversary of Moscow’s Ukraine invasion

A White House spokesman said the US had not determined how the opposition leader had died, but insisted that the ultimate responsibility lay with Putin

2-MIN READ2-MIN

Flowers are placed around a portrait of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in front of the former Russian consulate in Frankfurt am Main, Germany on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

Published: 3:05am, 21 Feb 2024

The White House says it is preparing additional “major sanctions” on Russia in response to opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s death in an Arctic penal colony.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Tuesday that the new package would be unveiled this Friday.

He declined to detail the new actions, citing US government policy, or share how they would expand on the already stiff sanctions the US and its allies have put on Russia in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine.

Kirby said only that the sanctions, which will coincide with the two-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion, will be “specifically supplemented with additional sanctions regarding Mr Navalny’s death”.

People come to lay flowers for late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny on Tuesday at the Solovetsky Stone, a monument to political repression in Moscow. Photo: AFP

Kirby said the US had not determined how Navalny had died, but insisted that the ultimate responsibility lay with Putin.