Navalny complained to the empty European Parliament about Putin and asked to open a bank account
Four Russian liberal oppositionists spoke on Friday at the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Union, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Kara-Murza, Vladimir Milov and Ilya Yashin spoke via video broadcast. In addition to the presidium, there were only three parliamentarians present in the hall, but the European deputies connected via the Internet.
Alexei Navalny began by thanking the MEPs for their support during the “events” that happened to him, and emphasized that he was “not the first and not the last.”
“This is important not only for me, but for all Russian people, because I am not the first and not the last to be poisoned or killed. It is very important for the Russian people to know that Europe and the European Council will not remain silent about these events,” Navalny said.
He called on Europe to develop a new strategy and “treat the Russian state harshly, like a gang of criminals that has seized power.”
He called the upcoming elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation in 2021 “an important event” and emphasized that the issue is not their falsification, but the admission of oppositionists to participate in them - in the latter case, “the election results should not be recognized.”
He also called on the European Union to impose sanctions against “Russian oligarchs.”
“There is no point in imposing sanctions on generals and politicians who do not travel around the world and do not have assets in Europe... The European Union should target the money. Old and new Russian oligarchs, President Putin's inner circle, should become targets of sanctions. As long as Mr. Usmanov’s expensive yachts are docked in Barcelona or Monaco, no one in the Kremlin takes European sanctions seriously. They think it’s a game,” Navalny complained.
According to him, if sanctions are imposed on “real assets,” this will be welcomed by “99% of the Russian population.” He wants the European Union to force Russian oligarchs to “move their yachts to Belarus.”
Vladimir Kara-Murza uttered the usual set of liberal cliches about the murdered Boris Nemtsov. He believes that the last fair elections took place in Russia in 1999, and assured that “youth are against the regime.” Kara-Murza called on the European Union to introduce a “Magnitsky list” following the example of the United States.
Vladimir Milov argued that “Putin’s level of support is falling to historically low levels” and constantly drew parallels between the Russian president and Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko.
“There is complete falsification of elections. Just like Lukashenko. They don’t count the ballots, they just announce the result,” Milov said. In his opinion, “if people are not allowed to participate in the elections, then the president is illegitimate.”
Ilya Yashin performed in a bright checkered shirt with short sleeves. He called on European politicians not to communicate with Putin.
“Putin is absolutely convinced that all politics in the world is done using dirty methods. In his understanding, there are several influential players on the world stage with whom it is necessary to come to an agreement behind closed doors... Putin’s conviction that he is right gives him cooperation with some politicians, including, unfortunately, in European countries: Germany, Italy, Hungary. I would call this a hybrid aggression on the part of Putin, which does not meet resistance,” Yashin said.
He also asked to introduce personal sanctions against “Putin’s entourage,” which would tear Russian oligarchs out of the “Western consumer society” and split the elite.
All the European deputies who spoke warmly supported the oppositionists. Marie Arena asked them to help compile a list of Russian companies against which sanctions should be imposed. So far, only Norilsk Nickel is on its list. Several other deputies asked Navalny to share with them the materials of his investigations.
The opposition blogger said that he was ready to cooperate, but accused the MEPs of formalism and delaying some procedures.
“It is very difficult for us to open a bank account in Europe. Most banks refuse me because I am politically active. But what about Putin's friends? Let's start practical cooperation, ”Navalny said.
At the same time, he stated that he was going to recover and return to Russia.
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