Russia expels EU diplomats, ignores bloc's call to free Navalny

By Andrew Osborn and Robin Emmott

 

FILE PHOTO: A still image taken from video footage shows Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who is accused of flouting the terms of a suspended sentence for embezzlement, inside a defendant dock during the announcement of a court verdict in Moscow, Russia February 2, 2021. Press service of Simonovsky District Court/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

 

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia on Friday expelled diplomats from three EU member states it accused of attending illegal protests in support of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, and pointedly ignored a public call by the EU's top diplomat to free the opposition politician.

 

The expulsions, which affected diplomats from Germany, Poland and Sweden, appear to have wrecked an EU attempt to re-engage with Moscow being spearheaded by Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, who was in Russia for talks on Friday.

 

German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the move unjustified and a further step away from the rule of law in Russia, while Poland summoned the Russian ambassador over the decision.

 

Navalny, President Vladimir Putin's most prominent critic, was jailed this week for almost three years for parole violations he calls trumped up, a move the West condemned.

 

Russia announced the expulsions after Borrell used a joint news conference with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to call for Russia to free Navalny immediately.

 

Lavrov did not respond directly to the appeal but complained about what he described as human rights abuses in the EU and called the 27-nation bloc an unreliable partner.

 

Borrell had earlier said that the Navalny case was a low point for ties between Russia and the EU. He said there was not yet a formal proposal for new EU sanctions on Russia but that the 27-member bloc would have a discussion next month about relations with Moscow.

 

"I have conveyed to Minister Lavrov our deep concern and our appeal for his (Navalny's) release and for the launch of an investigation over his poisoning," Borrell told the news conference. "Over the last years our relationship has been marked by fundamental differences and a lack of trust."

 

Navalny was arrested on Jan. 17 on his return from treatment in Germany, where he was flown in August after falling ill from what German officials concluded was poisoning with a military-grade nerve agent. The Kremlin has questioned whether Navalny was poisoned and denied blame for his illness.

 

Lavrov said it was up to Brussels if it wanted to impose sanctions on Russia, but that the EU was behaving more and more like Washington in its use of unilateral sanctions.

 

"We share the view that a further deterioration of ties is fraught with negative and highly unpredictable consequences," Lavrov said.

 

A few hours after the talks, Russia announced the expulsion of the diplomats, saying they had taken part in illegal protests last month against Navalny's jailing. The foreign ministry said Moscow considered their actions unacceptable.

 

Despite close trade ties and energy interdependence, Russia's political relations with the European Union soured after Moscow annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.

 

Navalny was back in court on Friday for another trial, accused of slandering a World War Two veteran who took part in a promotional video backing changes last year that let Putin run for up to two more terms. Navalny at the time described those in the video as traitors and lackeys. He denies the slander charge.

 

In comments by video link at the trial, the veteran called on Navalny to apologise publicly.

 

"This case in general was intended as a kind of PR process because the Kremlin needs the headlines: Navalny slandered a veteran," Navalny told the court.

 

The next hearing in the case is on Feb. 12.

 

(Reporting by Andrew Osborn in Moscow and Robin Emmott in Brussels; Additional reporting by Tom Balmforth, Anton Zverev, Anton Kolodyazhnyy, Marina Bobrova and Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber in Moscow; by Thomas Escritt, Paul Carrell and Thomas Seythanl in Berlin, Simon Johnson in Stockholm and Alan Charlish and Joanna Plucinska in Warsaw; Editing by Nick Macfie and Peter Graff)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-02-06

 

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Go Putin, crush this upstart. We need stability in Europe, not the usual clamour for destroying stability in neighbouring countries. You want to see what regime change means....it means Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya....failed states with atrocious quality of life for citizens....quality of life much worse that under the supposed tyrants.

President Putin is providing strong leadership for Russia ???????? during turbulent times. It is strange the EU gives its diplomats the right to interfere in the judicial system of other countries, and to violate their sovereign rights. It's good Putin has chosen to ignore them and sent a strong signal of his own.

So Russia recognizes EU diplomats as legitimate foreign representatives but the UK does not because the EU is not a so-called "nation state." 

7 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Russia expels EU diplomats, ignores bloc's call to free Navalny

It’s really amazing to me how members of this forum keep defending dictator Putin and his criminal gang of oligarchs, whose only interest is to hang on to power and to squeeze as much money as possible out of old “mother Russia”. 

9 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

So Russia recognizes EU diplomats as legitimate foreign representatives but the UK does not because the EU is not a so-called "nation state." 

And long may it continue, you may be a diplomat in your EU, but when you come to the UK your just a member of a foreign local borough council ! 

45 minutes ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

President Putin is providing strong leadership for Russia ???????? during turbulent times. It is strange the EU gives its diplomats the right to interfere in the judicial system of other countries, and to violate their sovereign rights. It's good Putin has chosen to ignore them and sent a strong signal of his own.

Totalitarian regimes are known for their strong leadership, albeit without electoral popular support. They are also known for controlling the state law enforcement and judicial systems to assure their control. So no kudos to Putin.

 

The EU has no juddicial representation in Russia's judicial system, cannot file any legal challenges and thus, cannot per se interfer in Russia's judicial system.

 

But like any soveign nation, the UK can express a unilateral political disagreement by any means within its own control, ie., sanction, expel diplomats, etc. If and when Putin's oligarchy's wealth is threatened by any UK political retaliation, that is when he will alter his domestic political agenda.

16 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

So Russia recognizes EU diplomats as legitimate foreign representatives but the UK does not because the EU is not a so-called "nation state." 

Are the expelled diplomats not accredited to their home country embassy in Russia, rather than as EU connected diplomats?

 

The UK accepts such home country diplomats as being legitimate but not, for now, the multitude of EU gravy train riders.

28 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

So Russia recognizes EU diplomats as legitimate foreign representatives but the UK does not because the EU is not a so-called "nation state." 

Russia expels EU diplomats. The UK politely reminds them of their lack of status and legitimacy.

 

Maybe these ‘diplomats’ would be better served trying to procure vaccines on behalf of Ursula? She needs all the help she can get. Just a thought...

Russia is still going give EU the spunic vaccine, good on me. 

I don't Judge Putin like others the anti-Russian mafia are hypocrites. 

2 hours ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

President Putin is providing strong leadership for Russia ???????? during turbulent times. It is strange the EU gives its diplomats the right to interfere in the judicial system of other countries, and to violate their sovereign rights. It's good Putin has chosen to ignore them and sent a strong signal of his own.

The EU did nothing to violate the Russian government's sovereign rights by openly criticizing it. Now, if they had used fleets of bots and employed an army of IT workers to undermine the government's case, you might have something of a point.

Troll post and reply removed

 

Tit for tat...

 

EU expels three Russian diplomats, defends envoy's ill-starred Moscow trip

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-politics-navalny-eu/eu-defends-foreign-policy-chief-over-russia-trip-after-expulsions-idUSKBN2A80YG

 

Kinda embarrassing position for Borrell to be in.

 

 

My understanding is that he skipped bail after being convicted in two large fraud scams. Having returned he was jailed for those. Hardly seems a political event involving other countries. As to the "poisoning" when are those Russians going to learn to make a decent nerve agent, all their targets survive. You'd think they'd make sure and just suicide inconvenient people as is so popular in some other countries. All these survivors just seems to generate bad press.

On 2/6/2021 at 7:38 AM, dabhand said:

Are the expelled diplomats not accredited to their home country embassy in Russia, rather than as EU connected diplomats?

You are one train late. That was the situation before the Lisbon treaty.

On 2/6/2021 at 7:19 AM, Srikcir said:

So Russia recognizes EU diplomats as legitimate foreign representatives but the UK does not because the EU is not a so-called "nation state." 

They are waiting to make a strategic FTA with the EU. After that, they will remove the diplomatic status of EU representatives in Russia. ????