LONDON — Kremlin officials rejected on Tuesday a call for an independent postmortem examination on the remains of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

The Council of the European Union had on Monday called for the independent review, saying Russia “must allow an independent and transparent international investigation into circumstances of his sudden death.”

“Mr Navalny’s unexpected and shocking death is yet another sign of the accelerating and systematic repression in Russia,” the council said in a statement.

PHOTO: Flowers are seen placed around portraits of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in a Russian Arctic prison, at a makeshift memorial in front of the former Russian consulate in western Germany, on Feb. 20, 2024.

Flowers are seen placed around portraits of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in a Russian Arctic prison, at a makeshift memorial in front of the former Russian consulate in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany, on Feb. 20, 2024.

AFP via Getty Images

A spokesperson for Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected the body’s request on Tuesday, saying “Moscow does not accept such demands” from the European Union.

Members of Navalny’s inner circle said they were continuing on Tuesday to seek access to the opposition leader’s remains.

ABC News’ Joe Simonetti and Patrick Reevell contributed to this story.



Source link