An associate of the late Aleksei Navalny claims a prisoner swap involving the Russian opposition leader was in the final stages before he died in a remote Siberian prison.
Maria Pevchikh, the chairwoman of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, said in a video statement on YouTube on February 26 that Navalny's associates had worked for two years to convince Western officials to negotiate a deal that would include the Kremlin critic and two U.S. citizens held in Russian prisons for Vadim Krasikov, a former colonel in Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) who was convicted of assassinating a former Chechen fighter in Berlin in 2019.
Pevchik did not name the two U.S. citizens to be included in the exchange. Several Americans are currently being held in Russian prisons, including former Marine Paul Whelan, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, and RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva. Navalny would be included in the deal as part of "a humanitarian exchange."
"At the beginning of February, Putin was offered to swap the FSB killer, Vadim Krasikov, who is serving time for a murder in Berlin, for two American citizens and Aleksei Navalny. I received confirmation that negotiations were at the final stage in the evening of February 15. On February 16, Aleksei was killed," Pevchikh said.
"Aleksei Navalny could have been sitting here now, today. It's not a figure of speech," she added.
Pevchikh’s statements have yet to be confirmed or rejected by other sources.
Asked at a regular news conference in Berlin on February 26 about the report, German government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann said she couldn’t comment.
"We have already received similar questions, and I can't answer anything other than that we can't comment on them,” she told the news conference, according to a senior press officer responding to RFE/RL's e-mail.
Earlier this month, Putin told U.S. commentator Tucker Carlson that "an agreement can be reached" to free Gershkovich, who was arrested in March 2023 in Russia on espionage charges that he, his employer, and the U.S. government have rejected as groundless, in a swap for a "patriotic" Russian national currently serving out a life sentence for murder in Germany -- an apparent reference to Krasikov.
The Wall Street Journal cited Western officials at the time as saying that Putin wanted Krasikov to be released in exchange for U.S. prisoners, including Gershkovich and that Krasikov was central to any deal.
In her video, Pevchikh alleged Putin "wouldn't tolerate" Navalny being set free and instead of swapping him, the Russian leader decided to "get rid of the bargaining chip." She offered no evidence to back up her claim.
She also said Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich acted as an "informal negotiator" between the Kremlin and U.S. and European officials.
"I asked Roman Abramovich through mutual acquaintances how, when, and under what circumstances he did this, and what Putin said. Unfortunately, Abramovich did not answer these questions, but he did not deny anything either," Pevchikh said.
There was no immediate comment from Abramovich. The Kremlin has also not commented on the report.
Navalny's body was released to his family over the weekend, a week after his death was made public by the administration of the so-called "Polar Wolf" prison where he was serving a 19-year term on extremism and other charges that he and his supporters rejected as politically motivated.
No cause of death has been given.
Navalny's mother has accused Russian officials of pressuring her to have a secret burial for her son in order to avoid a massive outpouring of support for one of Putin's most vocal critics.
"The funeral is still pending. We do not know if the authorities will interfere to carry it out as the family wants and as Aleksei deserves. We will inform you as soon as there is news," his spokeswoman, Kyra Yarmysh, said on X, formerly Twitter, on February 24.
She added in a post on February 26 that "we are looking for a hall for a public farewell to Aleksei. Time: end of this work week."
SEE ALSO: Navalny's Body Handed Over To His Mother, Aides Of Kremlin Critic SayKremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on February 26 it was "absurd" to claim Navalny's family was being pressured.