Imprisoned opposition politician Alexei Navalny has reportedly been transferred to a detention center in Moscow from a penal colony in the Vladimir region due to new criminal proceedings against the outspoken Kremlin critic.
The European Union again called for his immediate release.
The Russian government-linked Baza Telegram channel reported on December 12 that Navalny -- who has been missing for nearly a week and has missed several court hearings -- had been transported to the capital as part of an investigation into his actions in a vandalism case brought against him.
The Baz report comes a day after Navalny's lawyer was told his client had been transferred from a penal colony to an unspecified facility.
Navalny is serving a total of 19 years in prison for extremism and other charges he dismisses as politically motivated.
He was expected to be transferred to a tougher "special regime" facility after his sentence was increased to 19 years in August on charges of creating an extremist organization, which Navalny and his supporters also dismissed as politically motivated.
Navalny's current isolation from the outside world coincided with the campaign his team launched on December 7 against President Vladimir Putin. On that day, the upper house of the Russian parliament, the Federation Council, set March 17, 2024 as the date for the presidential election.
On December 12, the European Union repeated its call for Navalny's release, and the bloc's top political official, Josep Borelj, said it was "very worrying" that the Russian activist had disappeared.
"The Russian political leadership is responsible for his safety and health in prison, for which they will be held accountable," Borrel said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
"The EU reiterates its call for his immediate and unconditional release from politically motivated prison," he added.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, however, said the presidential administration "does not have the ability" to follow the fate of any prisoner, including Navalny.
Peskov added that "interference" in the situation surrounding Navalny is "unacceptable".
Putin, who has led the country as prime minister or president since 1999, is eligible to run in two more presidential elections due to constitutional amendments introduced in 2020. He is expected to win the election easily.
Navalny was previously sentenced in 2021 after he arrived in Moscow from Germany, where he was recovering from a poisoning attack blamed on the Kremlin, which has been denied.
He was Russia's loudest opposition voice and incited large anti-government rallies before he was jailed.
With reporting by Baz and Interfax
Bonus video:
