Alexei Navalny, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s primary domestic political opponent, went on trial this week on charges that carry 30 years in prison.

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Putin’s government and media outlets sympathetic to it depict Navalny as colluding with Russia’s longtime adversaries, the Americans.

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After Navalny highlighted Russian government corruption, a Putin spokesman accused Navalny of incitement aimed at “overthrowing the government.”

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Putin referred in 2020 to news reports fueled by his adversary that damaged his reputation as “implanted stories,” and said Navalny “is enjoying the support of the US special services.”

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When Navalny ran against Putin in 2021, leading social media sites censored information favorable to his campaign.

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After the 2021 presidential election, which Navalny accused Putin of rigging, Russians declared organizations associated with him as extremist and ginned up multiple legal cases against him.

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Russians who protested most vigorously on Navalny’s behalf faced arrest and harsh treatment from the state.

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Putin’s allies regularly describe Navalny as a fascist and even preposterously charge him with “rehabilitating the Nazi ideology.”

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In pursuing legal cases against Navalny, the Russian government violated his attorney-client privilege.

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The authorities imprisoned Navalny’s political associates.

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Russian prosecutors, in a further attempt to intimidate those who provided Navalny assistance, even charged one of his former lawyers.

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Putin lashes out at Navalny, the West, and other enemies to hide the millions pocketed through political corruption and connections to oligarchs.

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When confronted with his own contempt for the rights of his political opponents and encroachments of the freedom of all Russians, Putin invokes dissidents in the United States “being called domestic terrorists” and facing prison sentences of almost 30 years.

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People who dare question the corruption, misuse of the security apparatus, and infringement on citizens’ rights in Russia find their patriotism questioned.

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