Navalny returned to Russia 3 years ago. He has been behind bars since then

Exactly three years ago, on January 17, 2021, opposition leader Alexei Navalny returned to Russia from Germany, where he was treated after poisoning. Immediately after his arrival at the Moscow Sheremetyevo airport, he was detained and sent to a pre-trial detention center, later the court replaced his conditional sentence in the so-called “Yves Rocher” case with a real one. Later, the courts gave him several more sentences in criminal cases, Navalny was not released for a single day and has been behind bars for three years. Now he is in a special regime colony in the village of Harp in the Arctic. Navalny considers his persecution to be political, human rights activists have recognized him as a political prisoner.

In Navalny’s account on X social networks on the anniversary of the oppositionist’s return published text, dedicated to his causes (the politician’s associates read him on YouTube). Navalny explains why he returned to Russia despite the threat of arrest. “There are no secrets and schemes. Everything is really so simple. I have my country and my beliefs. And I don’t want to give up either my country or my beliefs. And I can’t betray either the first or the second. If your beliefs stand for something, you must be ready to stand up for them. And if necessary, make some sacrifices,” the oppositionist writes. He also expresses confidence that “Putin’s model of power is unviable” because it is based on lies.

On January 21, Navalny’s associates intend to hold rallies in dozens of countries around the world demanding his release and the departure of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Three years ago, in connection with Navalny’s arrest, mass protests took place in Russian cities. Now Navalny’s supporters are not calling for street actions in Russia due to the tightening of repression.

On the anniversary of Navalny’s arrest, the EU Foreign Policy Department issued a statement, calling the persecution politically motivated and expressing concern over the threat to his life. The EC called for the release of Navalny and other political prisoners in Russia, among whom Ilya Yashin, Vladimir Kara-Murza, Yury Dmitriei, Alexey Horinov and others are named.

• Navalny, the founder of the Anti-Corruption Foundation, one of the most famous opponents of President Vladimir Putin, was poisoned in Tomsk on August 20, 2020, and was taken to Germany for treatment in a coma. He himself, referring to the data of the investigation, accuses the Russian authorities of poisoning, experts have established that he was poisoned by the poison of the “Novichok” group. Already after his arrest, Navalny was sentenced first to 9 years in a high-security prison on charges of fraud, and then to 19 years in a special regime on a number of charges, including the creation of an extremist community. Several more cases against him are now being investigated.