On Saturday, Nikki Haley emphasized the need for former President Donald Trump to address the passing of Aleksei A. Navalny, a “hero” figure in Russian opposition. She asserted that Navalny’s outspokenness and his untimely demise, which she attributed to President Vladimir V. Putin, required Trump to “respond to that.”
This statement was reported by the New York Times. Haley made these comments while addressing reporters outside her rally in Irmo, S.C., commending Navalny for his courage in confronting Putin’s corruption and manipulation of elections.
She said the staunch Kremlin critic had fled the land of his birth only to return “to fight the good fight.”
“And then he was arrested, and now Putin has done to him what Putin does to all of his opponents — he kills them,” she said, before turning on Trump, her rival in the G.O.P. primary.
“And Trump needs to answer to that. Does he think Putin killed him? Does he think Putin was right to kill him? And does he think Navalny was a hero?”
As per a report from Breitbart News, Aleksei Navalny, who was incarcerated as a political prisoner, passed away on Friday. He was serving a 19-year prison term at an Arctic penal colony.
Putin Critic, Russian Opposition Leader Alexi Navalny Dies in Arctic Penal Colony Says Russia https://t.co/OTrJFtN5rI
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) February 16, 2024
Aleksei Navalny, aged 47, was labeled a “terrorist and extremist” by the Russian government and was convicted of multiple offenses, which he consistently argued were baseless and politically driven.
Trump has not issued a public statement regarding Navalny’s passing.
