[Current Events Observation] "Old Routines" Test Russia-Europe Relations Again
As the German government announced that the Russian opposition figure Navaline had been poisoned by "Novijok," relations between Russia and the West became increasingly tense.
Many European countries, as well as the European Union and NATO, have requested investigations and threatened sanctions against Russia, but Russia insists that the allegations lack evidence.
In the opinion of analysts, there are still many details of the "poisoning" incident in Navalny, and it remains to be seen how Russia-Europe relations will develop next.
Navalny, a member of the Russian opposition, became unwell in Russia on August 20 and was hospitalized.
On August 22, the German side received Navalny from the Charité Hospital in Berlin for treatment. Two days later, the hospital stated that Navalny had signs of poisoning.
On September 2, German government spokesperson Sebet announced that the German military laboratory found that the poison in Navariny was "Novijok" and that the German side had "unquestionable evidence." .
German Chancellor Merkel subsequently stated that the German government strongly condemned the incident and asked Russia to answer it.
Merkel also said that Germany has notified EU member states and NATO allies of this situation.
After the German government expressed its position, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Italy and other countries followed suit and put pressure on Russia.
European Commission President Von der Lein, European Council President Michel, and EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy Borelli all condemned the incident and demanded that Russia conduct a thorough investigation.
In addition, NATO Secretary-General Stoltenberg said on September 4 that the "poisoning" of Navariny was an "attempted assassination" incident and demanded that Russia "must cooperate with international investigations."
US President Trump called "This is a terrible tragedy" but said he has not seen any evidence.
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said it would cooperate with the investigation.
Russia has firmly denied the string of accusations made by the West.
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zakharova, the so-called "poisoning" of Navariny has "no facts, no data, and no chemical substances."
The Russian side stated that Russia is willing to carry out "comprehensive cooperation" with Germany, but the German side refuses to provide Russia with key information.
At the same time, Russia accused the West of deliberately exerting pressure on Russia.
Zakharova said that the Navalny incident was a "typical information war" launched by some Western politicians against Russia.
Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov stated that what is currently happening around Navariny is "old routine", and the West cannot show the facts except for exaggeration.
Russian State Duma Chairman Volodin also said that the Navalny incident was a "premeditated action" against Russia and aimed at imposing new sanctions on Russia.
In addition, a recording released by the Belarusian state media on the 4th showed that a German official told a Polish official that it does not matter whether Navalny was "poisoned", "this is a war, and the war must be done by any means."
In the opinion of analysts, the Navalny incident seems to be developing in a direction similar to the former Russian agent Skripal's poisoning incident. At that time, Britain accused Skripal of poisoning as "Novichok." The Russian diplomats were subsequently expelled collectively.
Today, many members of the European Parliament have asked the EU to impose sanctions on Russia on the Navaline incident.
Many parties in Germany also called for the suspension of the "Beixi-2" natural gas pipeline project to put pressure on Russia.
However, analysts believe that although the Navalny incident has caused the deterioration of relations between Russia and the West, it is uncertain whether the West will collectively sanction Russia.
On the one hand, the "Beixi-2" project is related to the energy supply and energy security of Germany and even the European Union. The suspension of the project will actually have a greater impact on Europe, so Germany is unlikely to use the project to sanction Russia.
On the other hand, there is no direct evidence that Russia is involved in the Navalny incident, and there are insufficient reasons for the West to impose sanctions on Russia.
If the content in the recordings announced by Belarus is true and the Navalny incident was "designed" by the West to prevent Russia from intervening in Belarus, then it is even more unlikely for the West to "set fire".