Navalny explains why he had to return to Russia in resurfaced interview

Footage of Alexei Navalny explaining why he needed to return to Russia has resurfaced following his death.

The politician, who was Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critic, returned to Russia from Germany in January 2021, where he had been recovering from an assassination attempt using Novichok poisoning.

“I don’t think that I can have such a privilege of being safe in Russia, but I have to go back,” Navalny told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in December 2020.

“I don’t want this group of killers [to] exist in Russia. I don’t want Putin ruling Russia.”

Navalny’s death was announced by Russia’s federal prison service on Friday 16 February.