Guaidó calls for Navalni’s freedom and asks the world to act in his defense

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó.

Caracas, Jan 17 2021 – Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó asked this Sunday for the release of Russian politician Alexéi Navalni, detained upon arrival in his country, five months after the poisoning he suffered.
“The arbitrary detention of Navalni evidences a clear violation of human rights by one of the main allies of the (Nicolás) Maduro regime,” Guaidó said on his Twitter account.

The leader thus requested his release and asked the world “to act together in his defense, and against the persecution of dissent.”
Navalni was detained today by Russian police at the passport control of Moscow’s Sheremetievo airport.
Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service (SFP), which had issued a search and arrest warrant against the opponent, confirmed his arrest.
The SFP accuses Navalni of failing to comply with the conditions of a suspended 3.5-year prison sentence handed down against him in 2014 and has asked the courts to order his imprisonment.

The opponent, SFP stressed in a statement, “will be detained until the Justice resolves.”
As he had announced this week, Navalni returned to his country this Sunday after having recovered in Germany from the poisoning suffered last August, for which the opposition leader blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Several countries have called for Navalni’s release, including the United States, and organizations such as Amnesty International (AI), which called him a “prisoner of conscience.”
The high representative of the European Union (EU), Josep Borrell, has also called for Navalni’s “immediate” release.
“The politicization of justice is unacceptable,” he added.