Calling President Vladimir Putin An Awkward Neighbor, France Warns Of Sanctions On Russia

Alexei Navalny. (Wikimedia Commons / Michał Siergiejevicz)

JAKARTA - French Foreign Minister Jean Yves Le Drian reminded Russia that the European Union will hold President Vladimir Putin and the authorities in the Land of Red Exile, if Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny dies. And, impose new sanctions.

Navalny is known to have been on a hunger strike for three weeks, as a form of protest because Russian authorities refused a request for a doctor's examination for back pain and numbness in his legs. This hunger strike puts you at risk of kidney failure or heart attack.

"This relentless attack on Navalny is unbearable," Jean-Yves Le Drian told France 2 television.

"We will take the necessary sanctions and that will be the responsibility of Putin and the Russian authorities. I hope we will not go to that extreme," Le Drian said in response to questions about how Europe would react if Navalny died.

Labeling Russia's recent actions at home as an authoritarian shift, Le Drian also touched on the issue of Russia's military deployment to the border with Ukraine. However, Le Drian said that discussions were still needed regarding this issue.

"He (Vladimir Putin) is an awkward neighbor. Sometimes it's dangerous, but he's still there, so we need to keep talking," said Le Drian.

"I don't think it's Russia's desire to take military action against Ukraine. However, placing troops on the border poses the risk of accidents," he added.

Ukraine is trying to shore up international support in its stalemate with Moscow over an increase in Russian troops on its eastern border and in Crimea, which was annexed from Kyiv in 2014.