Lord Cameron leads tributes to "brave" Alexei Navalny after death
The Foreign Secretary said that there would be "consequences" for Putin
Last updated 17th Feb 2024
Lord Cameron has paid tribute to Alexei Navalny and warned of "consequences" for Russian President Vladimir Putin following his death.
Navalny, a staunch and vocal critic of Putin's regime in Russia, was found dead whilst being held in prison after becoming unwell and losing consciousness on Friday (February 16th).
Following his death, a number of world leaders from the West have pinned the blame on Putin, who has been active in silencing dissent and critics of his invasion into Ukraine.
After the news of his death was made public by Russia's federal prison service, demonstrations were held across the world in opposition to Putin's leadership, as many called for change.
Now, the UK government has joined its counterparts in condemning Navalny's death, with Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron saying there needed to be repercussions for his passing, pinning the blame on Putin.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Cameron told reporters: "There should be consequences."
Continuing on, he said: "When appalling human rights outrages like this take place, what we do is we look at whether there are individual people that are responsible and whether there are individual measures and actions we can take.
"We don't announce them in advance, so I can't say anymore than that. But that is what we will be looking at.
"Of course we have already summoned the ambassador and made clear our views about this dreadful event and the way this person was treated," he finished.
Lord Cameron also said that he would be urging his fellow G7 leaders to follow suit in criticising Alexei's death at an upcoming summit in Germany.
He also paid tribute to Navalny himself, adding: "Reflecting overnight makes you think what an incredibly brave man this was.
"His life revealed so much about the true nature of Putin's ghastly regime. And his death has revealed that all over again."
Critics of the Russian government have said that Putin had ordered Navalny's death, with many saying that the leader wanted to send a message to both the West and domestic activists against what it calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine.
His death also comes less than a month until fresh elections are held, which will give the 71-year-old another six years in power.
At the same event, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Navalny's death was not surprising, saying that "Putin kills whoever he wants".
He continued, adding: "After the murder of Alexei Navalny, it's absurd to perceive Putin as a supposedly legitimate head of a Russian state and he is a thug who maintains power through corruption and violence.
"He has just yesterday he tried to send us all a clear message as the Munich Security Conference opened, Putin murdered another opposition leader."