Following his recovery, Alexei Navalny made a conscious decision to return to Russia of his own volition because he regards that country as his personal and political home. It is utterly incomprehensible that he was detained by the Russian authorities on his arrival.

Russia is bound by its own constitution and by its international obligations to uphold the rule of law and protect civil rights. These principles must, of course, also be applied to Alexei Navalny. He should be released immediately.

Navalny was the victim of a serious poisoning attack on Russian soil. We continue to expect Russia to do everything it can to fully investigate this attack and bring the perpetrators to justice.