The United States has expressed a deep concern over the fate of detained Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who has not been heard from since early December.
"We are deeply concerned about the whereabouts of Alexei Navalny, who has now been missing in Russia's prison system for nearly three weeks," Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said in X.
"We again call for his immediate release and an end to the ongoing repression of independent voices in Russia," he added.
This week, UN rights expert Mariana Katsarova joined voices expressing dismay at Navalny's "enforced disappearance".
The dissident's lawyers say they have not been able to see or contact him since December 6.
On December 15, Navalny's spokeswoman Kira Yarmish said a legal representative had told her he had been moved from a prison near Moscow to an undisclosed location.
The lack of updates could mean Navalny will be moved to a tougher prison following a court ruling earlier this year.
The process can take weeks in Russia, where prisoners move slowly by train between remote facilities.
Navalny's team said his possible transfer to another prison was targeted as the Kremlin prepares for President Vladimir Putin's expected re-election in March.
Navalny, 47, Putin's main political opponent, was barred from running in the 2018 election because of an old fraud charge that his allies say was politically motivated.
He received a 19-year prison sentence in 2021 on "extremism" charges after surviving a poisoning attempt he blamed on the Putin regime. /BGNES
