G7 Slams Russia over Navalny Death

Jiji Press

10:33 JST, February 18, 2024

MUNICH (Jiji Press) — Foreign ministers of the Group of Seven major powers Saturday condemned Moscow for the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in an Arctic Circle jail announced Friday.

In a chair’s statement, the G-7 ministers demanded that Russia “fully clarify the circumstances of his death” and “stop its unacceptable persecution of political dissent.”

The ministers held a meeting in the German city of Munich on Saturday. At the beginning of the talks, the ministers observed a minute of silence.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa was absent from the meeting. On her behalf, a senior Foreign Ministry official participated.

In the statement, the ministers “expressed their outrage at the death in detention of Alexei Navalny, unjustly sentenced for legitimate political activities and his fight against corruption.”

A week before the second anniversary of the start of Russia’s massive invasion of Ukraine, the ministers reiterated their resolve to continue supporting Ukraine and strengthen sanctions against Russia.

The statement expressed “deep concern for the potentially devastating consequences on the civilian population of Israel’s further full scale military operation” expected to start in Rafah in the Gaza Strip.

The statement pointed to the need to strengthen humanitarian assistance in the war-torn Palestinian territory.