History will remember Putin as nothing but an 'underpants poisoner': Navalny

A Moscow court on Tuesday ordered Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny to serve prison time for violating the terms of his probation while he was recuperating in Germany from nerve-agent poisoning.

Navalny said in court that Russian President Vladimir Putin will be remembered as nothing but an "underpants poisoner," according to a transcript of his statement.

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Navalny, in a fiery speech to the court, alleged he was going to be jailed because of Putin’s concerns about him as a political rival, a suggestion the Kremlin has laughed off, referring to Navalny as a marginal figure without wide popular support.

Putin, 68, has dominated Russian politics since 2000 and could rule until 2036 under constitutional changes approved in a referendum last year.

Russia has suggested that Navalny is a CIA asset, a charge he rejects.

Navalny, one of Putin’s most prominent critics, was arrested on January 17 for alleged parole violations after returning from Germany where he had been recovering from being poisoned with a military-grade nerve agent.

Navalny said Russian state security agents had put the poison in his underpants, something the Kremlin denied. He used Tuesday’s hearing to try to frame Putin’s place in history.

After his arrest, Navalny released a YouTube video making allegations about Putin’s wealth that was viewed over 100 million times. The Kremlin said it was false.

(With inputs from agencies)