Kremlin Says Navalny Works With CIA After He Accuses Putin of Poisoning

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny delivers a speech during a rally to demand the release of jailed protesters, who were detained during opposition demonstrations for fair elections, in Moscow, Russia, on Sept. 29, 2019. File photo via Reuters

BERLIN/MOSCOW—The Kremlin on Thursday accused opposition politician Alexei Navalny of working with the CIA after Navalny said he believed President Vladimir Putin was behind the suspected poisoning that put him in a coma in Germany.

The accusation from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov appears to be the first time the Russian authorities have directly accused Putin’s highest-profile critic of working with a foreign intelligence agency.