Ukraine has always been Russian, at least a half of it. A large number of so-called Russian Ukrainians live in Ukraine – people who have Russian roots, consider themselves Russian and speak Russian. “Russian Ukrainians” make up, if not the majority, then half of the country’s population.
Summary
Alexei Navalny is well known in western Europe, far less in Russia. In Russia he is known in Moscow and Saint-Petersburg as a blogger and whistleblower who denounced corruption. But he is not a politician. If he was in any way an inconvenience for the Kremlin he couldn’t do what he does for a long time, it is obvious!
The corruption he denounces is true. But all the Russians knows that, it is not a secret for anyone.
But many people wonder if he was poisoned, why it didn’t work? and most of all why he would have been killed precisely now and not before? Navalny is irritating for the Russian elites, but he is a threat to nobody. He is insignificant.
The death of Navalny is a catastrophic scenario for the Kremlin, it is the worse thing that could happen. Exactly like Boris Nemstov. The interests of the Kremlin was to keep Nemtsov alive, if he dies, people accuse the Kremlin.
Instead people should wonder who benefits from the crime? Cui bono? Either Navalny’s sponsors are tired that he cannot achieve anything and wanted to get rid of him. Either it was organised to increase his popularity, and as a matter of fact he became more famous after this event.
There are a lot of scenarios. But the scenario, the Kremlin wanted to assassinate him but missed seems to me the most improbable. It doesn’t make sense. Moreover, this Novichok has no more effect on Navaly than on the Skripals.
And why did this happen precisely when the Nord Stream 2 project is about to be finalized? And why is there such a media frenzy to point to the Kremlin?
Disproof
This message is recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation about the poisoning of Alexey Navalny.
The TV program interviews an expert who is asked to comment on the EU sanctions published on October 15.
This is part of recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative on the poisoning of Alexei Navalny, portraying Western governments and institutions as inherently Russophobic and trying to harm and encircle Russia.
The narratives used here have been debunked by EUvsDisinfo:
Why didn't it work (while Russian secret service never fail a killing)?
We should wonder "cui bono?"
The poisoning is a way to gain in popularity (or here)
Real Novichok kills, not like the one used for Navalny or the Skripals who survived (plus here or here)
It happens precisely while the Nord Stream 2 project is not finished (to put the issue on the agenda and eventually disrupt it)
All the media are coordinated to demonise the Kremlin.
See related disinformation cases alleging that the West will falsely accuse Russia of poisoning Navalny as with Skripal and Litvinenko; the West has an interest in the death of Navalny to launch a new wave of sanctions against Russia; political scandal in Austria was a CIA operation to stop the construction of Nord Stream 2.