Navalny confirms Angela Merkel visited him in hospital

(Patria) – Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny confirmed on Monday that German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited him during his stay at a Berlin hospital where he was treated for poisoning with a nerve agent.

Navalny denied a report by the German magazine Der Spiegel that it was a 'secret visit' to the Charité hospital in Berlin.

"It was a private visit and a conversation with my family. I am grateful to Chancellor Merkel for visiting me in the hospital," Navalny posted on his Twitter profile.

Out of a total of 32 days in the hospital, Navalny spent 24 in intensive care before doctors assessed that he had recovered enough to be discharged. He will remain in Germany for some time for recovery.

Let us recall that the leader of the Russian opposition and the fiercest critic of President Putin and the Kremlin, Navalny, was transferred to Germany two days after falling ill on a domestic flight from Siberia on August 20.

His family, team, and supporters claim it was poisoning with the Novichok nerve agent, which has also been confirmed by German, French, and Swedish laboratories. The Russian government denies allegations of poisoning and refuses to open an investigation without a medical report and a discharge letter from the Berlin hospital.

The nerve agent used against Navalny belongs to the same group of poisons that the British government claims was used against former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury.

Merkel called the poisoning an 'attempted murder,' and her demand for Russia to open an investigation was joined by other world leaders.

Germany has also engaged the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) based in The Hague for technical support. This agency took independent samples from Navalny for testing, but the results have not yet been published.   

The Russian side has also officially requested the results from Germany, demanding 'comprehensive information on the so-called Navalny case,' including 'test results, biological materials, and other clinical samples' within 10 days.

The German side responded that 'Russia already has everything necessary for an independent investigation.'

Navalny is recovering faster than expected, confirmed the head of his team and close associate Leonid Volkov.