PARIS (Reuters) – France has summoned the Russian ambassador to Paris following the death of jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the French foreign ministry said on Tuesday, confirming earlier media reports.
The Russian ambassador was summoned on Monday, the ministry said. Germany also summoned Russia’s ambassador in Berlin on Monday over Navalny’s death.
Navalny, 47, died suddenly on Friday after a walk at the “Polar Wolf” penal colony in Kharp, about 1,900 km (1,200 miles) northeast of Moscow, where he was serving a three-decade sentence, the prison service said.
Western countries and Navalny’s supporters say Russian President Vladimir Putin is responsible for Navalny’s death. The Kremlin has denied involvement and says that Western claims that Putin was responsible were unacceptable.
(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Tom Hogue and Bernadette Baum)
