Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader suspected to be the victim of an assassination attempt, left a German hospital Tuesday evening amid further questions aimed at the Kremlin over his poisoning.
In an Instagram post, Navalny mocked news reports indicating that Russian President Vladimir Putin had suggested to French President Emmanuel Macron earlier in the day that his poisoning could have been staged by Navalny himself.
“Good theory, I believe it deserves the most careful attention,” Navalny said in the caption of the post, according to The Associated Press. “Cooked Novichok in the kitchen. Took a sip from a flask on the plane. Fell into a coma.”
“Putin outmaneuvered me. You can’t fool him,” Navalny continued. “As a result, I lay in coma for 18 days like a fool, but didn’t get my way.”
Navalny had been hospitalized since falling ill on a domestic Russian flight in August and being flown to Germany.
The German hospital in which Navalny was treated issued a statement
obtained by Reuters, indicating that long-term effects from the poisoning could not yet be known.
“Based on the patient’s progress and current condition, the treating physicians believe that complete recovery is possible. However, it remains too early to gauge the potential long-term effects of his severe poisoning,” said the hospital.
The Russian opposition leader’s poisoning has led to the latest round of criticism aimed at Moscow by the U.S. and its western allies. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has rejected Russia’s explanation for the poisoning, suggesting in interviews that Putin himself or other top officials were involved.
“I think people all around the world see this kind of activity for what it is. And when they see the effort to poison a dissident, and they recognize that there is a substantial chance that this actually came from senior Russian officials, I think this is not good for the Russian people,” he told podcaster Ben Shapiro in a recent interview.
