Putin likely didn’t order death of Russian opposition leader Navalny, US official says

U.S. quality officials person determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin apt didn’t bid the decease of imprisoned absorption person Alexei Navalny successful February

WASHINGTON -- U.S. quality officials person determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin apt didn’t bid the decease of imprisoned absorption person Alexei Navalny successful February, according to an authoritative acquainted with the determination.

While U.S. officials judge Putin was yet liable for the decease of Navalny, who endured brutal conditions during his confinement, the quality assemblage has recovered “no smoking gun” that Putin was alert of the timing of Navalny's decease — which came soon earlier the Russian president's reelection — oregon straight ordered it, according to the official.

The authoritative spoke connected the information of anonymity to sermon the delicate matter.

Soon aft the Navalny’s death, U.S. President Joe Biden said Putin was yet liable but did not impeach the Russian president of straight ordering it.

At the time, Biden said the U.S. did not cognize precisely what had happened to Navalny but that “there is nary doubt” that his decease “was the effect of thing that Putin and his thugs did.”

Navalny, 47, Russia’s best-known absorption person and Putin’s astir persistent foe, died Feb. 16 successful a distant penal colony supra the Arctic Circle portion serving a 19-year condemnation connected extremism charges that helium rejected arsenic politically motivated.

He had been down bars since January 2021 aft returning to Russia from Germany, wherever helium had been recovering from nerve-agent poisoning that helium blamed connected the Kremlin.

Russian officials person said lone that Navalny died of earthy causes and person vehemently denied engagement some successful the poisoning and successful his death.

In March, a period aft Navalny’s death, Putin won a landslide reelection for a 5th term, an result that was ne'er successful doubt.

The Wall Street Journal archetypal reported astir the U.S. quality determination.