Yulia Navalnaya has said Donald Trump’s negotiations with Russia on Ukraine are making Vladimir Putin “feel stronger”.
The Russian activist and widow of the late Russian dissident Alexei Navalny said Trump speaking to the Russian president “like they’re equal” is making him more powerful.
She made the remarks while speaking at a sold-out event with Alastair Campbell at the Hay Festival in Wales on Friday, which The Independent is once again partnering with.
“Putin is [a] crime person; he is a kind of mafia boss. He kills people. He started the war,” Ms Navalnaya said when asked how she felt about Trump’s involvement in Ukraine peace talks.
“Trump – you can like him or not – but he’s an elected president of a big country. He participated in real elections, he won these elections.
“But all of these negotiations happening like they’re equal gives Putin – who is a tyrant – more power.
“I’m sure it was very difficult for Putin and that he suffered a lot during these last few years, because nobody would have been meeting with him.
“He was just sitting in Moscow, scared to go anywhere because he was at war and he could be arrested somewhere.
“But now all of these negotiations have given him again more power. I’m absolutely sure Putin now feels more strength, and like he can do whatever he wants, because he feels people want to speak with him, people want to negotiate with him.”
She added: “Trump promised to stop this war and he’s trying to show that he’s capable of doing it. But it’s very difficult in the end to do it with a person who promises something that you can’t trust.”
Ms Navalnya’s late husband was arrested in 2021 after returning to Russia and had been serving sentences totalling more than 30 years on a number of charges, which were widely rejected by the international community.
His death was announced by Russian authorities on 16 February 2024 while he was serving time in a “special regime” penal colony in central Russia. The 47-year-old had reportedly fallen unwell after a walk, before losing consciousness.
Ms Navalnaya has previously claimed that Putin is responsible for Mr Navalny’s death, and on Friday she revealed how she had found out about her husband’s death through a news story.
“I was at Munich Security Conference, just at regular meetings in my hotel room, just preparing. Then I just opened [my phone] and it was written, ‘Alexei Navalny dead in prison.’” She added that she had seen false headlines about her husband being dead in the media at least once before.
Since her husband’s death, Ms Navalnaya has vowed to continue his fight. Last July, Russia issued an arrest warrant for Ms Navalnaya herself, over accusations she had participated in an “extremist” group.
She described her late husband as “courageous, funny and the best man in the world” after walking in to a standing ovation at the event to discuss his book Patriot.
When asked at the end of the talk if she hoped Russia would be a democracy one day, she replied simply: “Of course.”
Spread over 11 days, the 38th spring edition of the annual cultural event is set in Hay-on-Wye, the idyllic and picturesque “Town of Books”. The star-studded lineup includes Mary Trump, Michael Sheen, Jameela Jamil, and more.
The Independent has partnered with the festival once again to host a series of morning panels titled The News Review, where our journalists will explore current affairs with leading figures from politics, science, the arts and comedy every morning.
Ukraine war latest: Kyiv and Moscow exchange hundreds more prisoners
How I discovered my partner was an undercover police officer sent to spy on me
Alastair Campbell insists he and Tony Blair didn’t lie over Iraq
Sperm donor with cancer-causing gene passes on disease to 10 children
Ukrainian prisoners of war in emotional reunion after Russia prisoner swap
Hamburg stabbing: All 18 people injured now in a stable condition
