Alexei Nalvany

Alexei Nalvany, the most popular political opponent of Vladimir Putin in Russia, was flown to Germany over a week ago after collapsing in pain on a flight to Siberia. The German doctors have concluded that he was poisoned with nerve agent. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has requested a consultation with European Union partners to discuss an appropriate response to Russia. Some Europeans believe that Europe should not interfere with this Russian domestic issue because Russia may retaliate. Other argue that this a question of Human Rights that forces Europe to act and a joint action will be more effective. The foreign minister of Germany put it this way: “Putin has projected Russian power in Syria, Libya, and Belarus: Are the Europeans always going to end up doing nothing? If so, European Union will become irrelevant and we won’t be taken seriously”. What do you think? Should European Union countries take a joint response in the form of sanctions against Russia or this issue should be left to each country to decide? Should Europe stay out of Russian domestic issue?