Alexei Navalny, a Russian opposition figure, was on the brink of release in a prisoner exchange when President Vladimir Putin allegedly ordered his assassination.
Navalny passed away on February 16 at an Arctic penal facility. The Kremlin, viewing Navalny and his allies as extremists sponsored by the U.S., denied any state role in his demise.
Maria Pevchikh disclosed on YouTube that negotiations for Navalny’s swap, along with two unnamed Americans, for Vadim Krasikov, a Russian FSB agent imprisoned in Germany—were nearing completion at Navalny’s death.
“Alexei Navalny could have been with us today,” Pevchikh remarked, emphasizing the reality of the situation. She heads Navalny’s anti-corruption organization.
However, Reuters has confirmed that there was no immediate Kremlin response, and Maria Pevchikh, a Navalny ally outside Russia, provided no documentary proof for her claim.
Pevchikh detailed that Putin had been approached in early February with the swap proposal involving Krasikov, incarcerated for murder in Berlin, for Navalny and two Americans.
Krasikov, convicted in Germany for a 2019 assassination of a Chechen-Georgian dissident in Berlin, was labelled a patriot by Putin in an interview with U.S. journalist Tucker Carlson.
The German government refrained from commenting on Pevchikh’s statements.
Pevchikh, labelled a “foreign agent” by Russia, alleged she learned the swap was in its final phase on February 15, suggesting Navalny was killed the following day due to Putin’s unwillingness to see him freed, without explaining why Putin didn’t outright reject the swap.
She claimed the exchange idea was proposed by businessman Roman Abramovich, who has not commented on the claim.
The two Americans mentioned, according to the U.S., are Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former marine Paul Whelan, both accused of espionage by Russia—a charge they deny.
Reuters claimed that a Russian source informed that the exchange, agreed upon by Navalny and his wife, was slated for mid-February, with Abramovich playing a role in the discussions.
“The Germans agreed to the swap involving Navalny, which was finalized during German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s U.S. visit,” the source added.
While Putin has not commented on Navalny’s death and seldom mentions him by name, he acknowledged ongoing talks between Russian and U.S. intelligence regarding Gershkovich but did not mention Navalny.
