Alexey Navalny, a dissident and the political critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin, spent the previous few years of his life behind bars however nonetheless managed to remain related to the surface world, excerpts from letters he wrote throughout this era reveals.

Confined to chilly, concrete cells and sometimes alone along with his books, Aleksei A. Navalny sought solace in letters. Many particulars about his final months — in addition to the circumstances of his dying, which the Russian authorities introduced on Friday — stay unknown; even the whereabouts of his physique are unclear. Whereas Navalny’s aides have spoken little about his final moments, excerpts from letters he wrote to the Russian journalist Ilya Krasilshchik have been shared by The New York Instances. “The letters reveal the depth of the ambition, resolve and curiosity of a frontrunner who galvanized the opposition to President Vladimir Putin and who, supporters hope, will stay on as a unifying image of their resistance,” the report says.

He wrote in July that nobody might perceive Russian jail life “with out having been right here,” including in his deadpan humor: “However there’s no should be right here.”

“In the event that they’re instructed to feed you caviar tomorrow, they’ll feed you caviar,” Navalny, the Russian opposition chief, wrote to the identical acquaintance, Ilia Krasilshchik, in August. “In the event that they’re instructed to strangle you in your cell, they’ll strangle you.”

Navalny’s love for books

He boasted of studying 44 books in English in a 12 months and was methodically making ready for the long run: Refining his agenda, learning political memoirs, arguing with journalists, meting out profession recommendation to pals and opining on viral social media posts that his group despatched him.

In a letter dated April 2023, Navalny instructed Krasilshchik that he learn 10 books concurrently and used to “change between them.”

Navalny’s love for memoirs grew when he was in jail. “For some cause I all the time despised them. However they’re truly wonderful,” the previous politician mentioned.

Curiosity for Indian meals

In certainly one of his final hearings, by video hyperlink in January, Navalny argued for the appropriate to longer meal breaks to devour the “two mugs of boiling water and two items of disgusting bread” to which he was entitled.

The attraction was rejected; certainly, all through his imprisonment, Navalny appeared to savor meals vicariously by means of others, based on interviews.

He instructed Krasilshchik that he most popular doner kebabs to falafel in Berlin and took an curiosity within the Indian meals that Feldman tried in New York.

His public life

In keeping with New York Instances, Navalny was in a position to ship lots of of handwritten letters to his pals and supporters. By a web site, folks might write to him for 40 cents a web page and obtain scans of his responses, sometimes per week or two after he despatched them, and after they handed by means of a censor.

Navalny, who’d been imprisoned since January 2021, additionally communicated with the surface world by means of his attorneys, who held up paperwork towards the window separating them after they had been barred from passing papers.

Then there have been his frequent court docket hearings on new felony instances introduced by the state to increase his imprisonment, or on complaints that Navalny filed about his remedy. Navalny instructed Krasilshchik, a media entrepreneur now in exile in Berlin, that he loved these hearings, regardless of the rubber-stamp nature of Russia’s judicial system.

“They distract you and assist the time go quicker,” he wrote, based on NYT. “As well as, they supply pleasure and a way of wrestle and pursuit.”

His views about Donald Trump

In a letter despatched to a good friend, a photographer named Evgeny Feldman, Navalny mentioned former President Donald Trump’s agenda for a second time period was “actually scary,” based on the Instances.

He mentioned if President Joe Biden had been to have a well being situation, “Trump will turn out to be president,” including: “Doesn’t this apparent factor concern the Democrats?”

In one other letter to Feldman dated December 3, Navalny once more expressed concern over Trump and requested his good friend, “Please title one present politician you admire.”