Over the past two decades Vladimir Putin called Alexei Navalny “a bad excuse for a politician” and “a certain political force.” He called him “the character you mentioned” and “this gentleman.”
He never publicly called him Navalny.
As of noon Thursday, Putin has yet to comment personally on Angela Merkel’s statement that the Russian opposition politician has been “unequivocally” poisoned by a newcomer, but if he goes according to the previous form, he will use various linguistic tricks so as not to voice the name of his critic … …
Putin’s reluctance to say the word “Bulk” aloud has led to comparisons with Lord Voldemort, a Harry Potter villain that other characters don’t name. Navalny has also been banned from appearing on state television and is rarely mentioned there and in a negative light.
The only time Putin is known to have said Navalny’s name was during a drink reception in 2013, when he asked journalist, whether the omerta around Navalny’s name was deliberate. “No why? Alexei Navalny is one of the leaders of the opposition movement,” Putin said.
As time passed, he refused to mention the name, even when asked directly. “Those you named are the same as Saakashvili, only the Russian version,” he said, when asked about Navalny’s political plans for 2017, referring to Mikhail Saakashvili, the former Georgian reformer president.
After this press conference, Navalny joked on Twitter: “The word” Who you named “has now been added to my collection of words that are used to avoid pronouncing” Navalny. “
A year later, the Austrian interviewer twice asked Putin is straightforward why he never spoke Navalny’s name Putin ignored the question both times.
Most senior officials have followed Putin’s example. Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov sometimes uses the word “Navalny,” but sometimes uses distorted references such as “the above-mentioned citizen.”
The sensitivity around the name suggests the Kremlin believes the best way to defeat Navalny is to deny him access to publicity. The short period in which the Kremlin decided it was better to beat him at the ballot box and let Navalny run for Moscow mayor in 2013 was quickly cut as too dangerous after he won 27% of the vote despite lack of access to state television. …
In the following years, he appeared on television only as the object of dubious “revelations” of his alleged illegal activities. Even the news of the newcomer’s poisoning was only briefly mentioned.
At times, Navalny’s investigations seem to be so nerve-wracking that their subjects cannot resist answering, usually ignoring the details of the charges and resorting to threats instead. Perhaps the most memorable of these retaliatory actions came from Viktor Zolotov, the head of Russia’s 300,000-strong National Guard and a longtime Putin confidant who recorded a video message with threats after Navalny said about corruption in the guard.
“No one has ever spanked you the way you deserve, so hard that you can feel it with your liver,” Zolotov said in full form and brandished his fist. He challenged Navalny to a duel and said that he would make a “juicy steak” out of him.
Billionaire oligarch and former Arsenal shareholder Alisher Usmanov made two angry videos of Navalny following corruption allegations, in which he also accused Navalny of exaggerating the threats he received.
“You shout at every corner that you are being persecuted, that the government is ruthless. Ruthless? You spent the whole day in jail. One night, as far as I know, ”Usmanov said in a 2017 video. That claim was wrong at the time – Navalny had just been released from prison for 15 days, one of many periods behind bars – and in light of the poisoning, he looks even worse.
But Putin has always preferred silence. Now that world leaders are clamoring for answers, the Russian president may finally have to say the name out loud. Vyacheslav Volodin, the chairman of the State Duma and a former Putin aide, has already done so, albeit to promote conspiracy theory.
“The situation with Navalny is further proof that all this was a planned action against Russia with the aim of imposing new sanctions and stopping the development of our country,” Volodin said on Thursday.