The telegraph
Kremlin critic’s wife Alexei Navalny travels to Germany
The wife of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny arrived in Germany on a flight from Russia on Wednesday night, according to media reports. Yulia Navalnaya landed at Frankfurt airport after flying from Moscow on Wednesday night, according to German magazine Der Spiegel. It is unclear what prompted Navalnaya to leave Russia, but associates emphasized to the magazine that his departure was temporary. Her husband, a vocal critic of the Kremlin, was taken to Germany last summer after being poisoned in Siberia with what many Western countries have said are a military-grade nervous agent. Navalny returned to Russia with his wife on January 17, where he was arrested and sentenced to three and a half years in prison after a Moscow court ruled that he had violated the terms of his probation. Ms. Navalnaya was arrested on January 23 during a demonstration in Moscow. She was later fined 20,000 rubles (£ 196) for participating in what prosecutors said was an “unsanctioned protest”. Russian authorities responded to protests that swept the country in support of Navalny with strong repression, detaining about 11,000 people. They also took steps to isolate key members of Navalny’s team, putting several of their top associates under house arrest for two months without access to the Internet. The Kremlin is also considering passing legislation to prevent Navalnaya from participating in parliamentary elections in September. Navalny associates have refuted the suggestion that his wife is considering applying. The United States, Britain, Germany and the EU have asked Moscow to release Navalny immediately. Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, said Washington would coordinate closely with its allies to hold Russia accountable. On Wednesday, Heiko Maas, the German foreign minister, said sanctions against Russia must target the right people.