JRL NEWSWATCH: “Vladimir Putin, riding high before Navalny’s death, seems unstoppable” – Washington Post
“When prison authorities announced the death of … Navalny, … Putin’s most potent political opponent, the Russian president appeared to be overflowing with cheer. Addressing … workers and students at a machinery plant in the … industrial city of Chelyabinsk …, a smiling Putin, unsurprisingly, made no mention of Navalny’s death … and instead professed himself … satisfied at the technological progress he had just seen. ‘Forward! Success! To new borders!’ Putin declared to one young worker who had proclaimed her admiration for [him]. With Navalny’s demise at age 47, further military assistance for Ukraine still blocked in Congress and Ukrainian forces retreating …, a lot seems to be going Putin’s way a month ahead of a presidential election … he is certain to win. …”