US President Joe Biden, on Thursday, engaged in a meeting with the wife and daughter of Alexei Navalny, the late Russian opposition leader who tragically passed away last week while in a prison camp. Biden commended Navalny as "a man of incredible courage" during the encounter.
Speaking to reporters in California, Biden reiterated the United States' intention to impose a comprehensive set of sanctions on Russia and its leader, Vladimir Putin, in response to Navalny's demise.
Navalny, aged 47, was reported to have become unconscious and subsequently passed away on Friday following a walk at the "Polar Wolf" penal colony located above the Arctic Circle, where he was serving a three-decade sentence, as confirmed by the prison service.
Reflecting on the encounter with Navalny's wife Yulia and daughter Dasha, Biden expressed admiration, stating, "He was a man of incredible courage, and it's amazing how his wife and daughter are emulating that."
Furthermore, Biden indicated that sanctions against Putin, who is deemed accountable for Navalny's death, will be officially announced the following day.
Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland elaborated on Thursday that the forthcoming sanctions, numbering in the hundreds, are slated to target individuals involved in Navalny's demise, with a substantial focus on impacting "Putin's war machine" and addressing gaps within existing sanctions frameworks.
The timing of these new measures coincides with the second anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Ahead of Biden's remarks to the press, the White House issued a statement conveying the president's "heartfelt condolences" to Navalny's family.
During the meeting in California, Biden reportedly conveyed his admiration for Navalny's "extraordinary courage and his legacy of fighting against corruption and for a free and democratic Russia in which the rule of law applies equally to everyone," as stated by the White House.
