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1 1 (February 9, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/goveccf0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service ~ ~~ ~informing the legis aive debate since 1914____________________ Russia: Opposition Crackdown and U.S. Policy February 9, 2021 A crackdown on anti-c orruption activist Alexey Navalny and protesters supporting him has drawn increased attention to human rights abuses in Russia under President Vladimir Putin. U.S. officials and Members of Congress have condemned an August 2020 nerve agent attack on Navalny, his January 2021 imprisonment, and the suppression of pro-Navalny demonstrations. The Biden Administration and international partners are expected to respond further to Russian human rights abuses and the apparent use of a chemical weapon. Recent developments indicate Russian authorities launched a campaign last year to silence Navalny, a one-time Moscow mayoral candidate. Navalny has demonstrated acumen in exposing government corruption and organizing anti-government actions, despite being barred from competing in elections since 2013. In August 2020, Navalny was poisoned and fell ill on a domestic flight to Moscow. His plane made an emergency landing, and Navalny was hospitalized; after public outcry, authorities allowed him to be evacuated to Germany for medical care. German officials later cited unequivocal evidence Navalny had been poisoned with an illicit nerve agent known as aNovichok. An investigation by independent researchers implicated several individuals linked to the Federal Security Service (FSB), Russia's leading domestic security agency. Navalny, posing as a government official, later spoof-called an alleged operative who appeared to provide details of the attack. Rather than seek asylum after recovering, Navalny and his wife, Yulia Navalnaya, returned to Moscow, where Navalny was detained at the airport on January 17, 2021. Authorities ostensibly arrested Navalny for having missed parole check-ins, including during his hospitalization abroad. Navalny's parole was related to a 3'2-year suspended sentence he received in 2014 on embezzlement charges the European Court of Human Rights found to be arbitrary, unfair and manifestly unreasonable. On February 2, a Russian court ordered Navalny to be imprisoned for 32 months of his suspended sentence (the court subtracted time served during house arrest). Navalny was imprisoned several times in the past for participation in unsanctioned protests. He was attacked twice with aharmful chemical substance in 2017 and possibly poisoned another time while in prison. Even after his latest arrest, Navalny has continued efforts to expose corruption and undermine Putin's leadership. Navalny's team released a documentary film purporting to present evidence of corruption Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov IN11596 CRS INSIGHT Prepared for Membersand Committeesof Congress

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