Merkel and Maas Urge Russia to Investigate Navalny's Poisoning Circumstances

The Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel, and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas have issued a joint statement calling on Russia to conduct a transparent and comprehensive investigation to clarify the circumstances surrounding the health deterioration of opposition figure Alexei Navalny.

According to the ТАСС news agency, the relevant document was published on Monday by the press service of the German government.

“According to the statement from the team of doctors at Charite Hospital, clinical research data indicate that Alexei Navalny was poisoned,” the Chancellor and the Foreign Minister reminded.

Merkel and Maas emphasized that “given Navalny's significant role in Russia's political opposition,” the authorities must now “determine every last detail and transparently investigate this crime.”

“All those responsible must be identified and punished,” the statement says.

It is worth mentioning that earlier, specialists from the Berlin hospital had confirmed that Navalny was poisoned by a substance from the group of cholinesterase inhibitors.

Navalny was transferred from the Omsk hospital to Berlin's Charite Hospital on Saturday morning. The politician's representative, Kira Yarmysh, reported that Navalny's condition had sharply deteriorated during a flight from Tomsk to Moscow, which caused the plane to make an emergency landing in Omsk, where Navalny was hospitalized.

Omsk doctors had excluded the poisoning hypothesis, stating that no poison was found in his body. He remains in a coma.