MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st February, 2021) US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the NBC news broadcaster in an interview that he was looking into Moscow's actions regarding opposition figure Alexey Navalny and other matters linked to Russia.
The secretary of state did not describe any specific sanctions, but said that US President Joe Biden "could not have been clearer in his conversation with [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin." In that phone call, Biden called on Putin to release Navalny from detention, where he was placed for breaching rules of parole, the White House spokeswoman said.
Blinken said he was also considering allegations of Moscow's involvement in a hacking attack on the US government agencies and offering bounties for US troops in Afghanistan. Russian authorities have strongly rejected both of these accusations.
Navalny arrived in Moscow on January 17, after receiving medical treatment in Germany, and was detained for breaching the conditions of his suspended sentence. His allies issued calls for people to join unauthorized allies across Russia on January 23 and January 31.
After the first rally, the Russian Foreign Ministry handed a note of protest to the US embassy in Moscow over its support for the illegal rallies, saying that the actions of the diplomatic mission were seen as "direct interference in the domestic affairs." The ministry also noted in a statement that it notified the US embassy of US digital platforms spreading fake stories about Russia. On January 31, the ministry slammed Blinken's comments about unauthorized rallies and his "support of blatant violation of law."
