Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Questioned Whether Navalny Was Poisoned in 2020. His Claims Debunked

The interview addressing Navalny's poisoning was published on December 6, 2024. Lavrov asserted that the Charité clinic found no evidence of poisoning: 

“They found nothing in the civilian clinic. The allegation of poisoning arose only after he received treatment at the Bundeswehr military hospital,” he said.

Nevertheless, there is no evidence supporting the assertion that Navalny was treated at a military hospital. According to a statement from the German federal government, the Bundeswehr laboratory conducted a toxicological study at the request of Charité, which detected traces of a nerve agent.

This analysis was performed by a laboratory designated by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the fact corroborated by their official report. Additionally, The Lancet, one of the world's leading medical journals, published that blood samples were obtained right after Navalny's admission to Charité. Therefore, it is inaccurate to claim that the civilian clinic found no evidence, as they were not responsible for conducting the tests; a specialized military lab was assigned for that purpose.

Throughout his treatment, Alexei Navalny remained at the Charité clinic, as indicated by their press release and a post on the clinic's official social media page X: “Alexei Navalny's condition continues to improve. The patient has been successfully disconnected from the ventilator. He is currently undergoing rehabilitation and is able to briefly get out of bed.”

In an interview with Der Spiegel, Navalny recalled and expressed gratitude solely to the doctors and nurses at the Charité clinic in Berlin, without mentioning any military hospital involvement.