Polish foreign minister says Navalny was a hero

"He was convicted in a trial on false charges... He was placed in prison, where he lived in terrible conditions. Vladimir Putin is responsible for all this."

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was a hero, Poland's foreign minister told state news agency PAP on Friday, adding that President Vladimir Putin was responsible for him being imprisoned in terrible conditions on false charges.

"My heart now goes to the family of Alexei Navalny, who is a hero and a symbol for all Russian democrats," Radoslaw Sikorski was quoted as saying. "He was convicted in a trial on false charges... He was placed in prison, where he lived in terrible conditions. Vladimir Putin is responsible for all this."