“I despise your court and I despise your power”: The complete collection of Alexei Navalny's “last words”

The Freedom Letters publishing house has defied a demand from the Russian Prosecutor General’s office to cease distribution of “Not-So-Last Words” — a compilation of courtroom statements from 49 political prisoners over the past decade. Russian authorities claim these texts pose “a threat to critical infrastructure, including transportation, social services, financial institutions, energy facilities, and communication networks.” The majority of the book's contributors remain incarcerated. With the publisher's consent, The Insider presents Alexei Navalny's collection of “last words” in court, from the “Kirovles case” of 2013 to his final courtroom address in January 2022.

• 1.“There are still more of us”
• 2.“Lying has become the essence of state power”
• 3.“Now the power is on your side, but this won't last forever”
• 4.“I deeply offended Putin by surviving”
• 5.“I am not afraid, and I urge everyone else not to be afraid”
• 6.“Whoever is on the side of truth will win”
• 7.“Your emperor with no clothes has stolen the Victory Banner and wants to make a thong out of it”
• 8.“Those who want to fight war must fight only despotism”
• 9.“I despise your court, I despise your system, and I despise your power”

RU

“There are still more of us”

Final statement in the “Kirovles case”

July 5, 2013

This whole affair feels more like a television drama, and we all understand perfectly well that the primary goal of this process is to resemble one — as if constantly mentioning my name on federal TV channels could somehow change what I’ve been saying about the crooks who’ve taken control of our country.

Frankly, I’m beginning to question the genre of this proceeding. Is it supposed to be a comedy or a tragedy? I could laugh at the absurdity of it all if it weren’t for the fact that other people are being dragged into this. First and foremost, I owe an apology to [co-defendant Pyotr] Ofitserov and his wife. They are suffering through this because of me — because the prosecution needed a businessman to entangle in this farce. I implore the court and the prosecution: stop tormenting this innocent man and his family. It's clear to everyone that Ofitserov’s involvement is purely collateral. The demand for a five-year prison sentence is beyond ridiculous. You've already confiscated his modest apartment in Ochakovo. What do you expect to achieve with a million-ruble fine? Will you imprison him and leave his five children without a home?

As for me, I fully understand why I’m here. I can look into any camera, into anyone’s eyes, and confidently say that I am innocent. I know that everyone who watches this broadcast or reviews the case materials will approach me and say, “Alexei, you are innocent.” Not just in this case, but in every trial that has been fabricated against me.

Today, the state prosecutor said something remarkable: “Let's step out of the world of fantasies and fairy tales.” I want to address those who orchestrated this process: Yes, let’s step out of this world of fantasies and fairy tales. Some might think this is not the ideal setting for me to make demands or set out my goals, but I disagree. This is precisely the place to talk about my plans. I declare that my colleagues and I will do everything in our power to dismantle the feudal system being constructed in Russia — a system where half a percent of the population controls 83 percent of the nation’s wealth.

“My colleagues and I will do everything in our power to dismantle the feudal system being constructed in Russia — a system where half a percent of the population controls 83 percent of the nation’s wealth”

I'm grateful this trial is occurring here in Kirov. In places like Kirov, Kumeny, or Omutninsk, the stark reality is impossible to ignore. Fifteen years of enormous oil and gas revenues — what tangible benefits have they brought to local residents? Has anyone here seen improved healthcare, better schools, or new housing? What have these officials actually delivered?

The only commodity more accessible now than in Soviet times is vodka. For us, the citizens, they guarantee nothing but decay and alcoholism. Meanwhile, FSB generals secure cushy bank jobs for their children and send them to study abroad. Despite my position in the dock, know this: we will continue to fight for you, the people.

If anyone thinks that hearing about a six-year sentence will make me run, they’re gravely mistaken. I won’t run from myself. I want to help the people of my country. I believe that none of us has the right to remain neutral right now. None of us has the right to avoid making the world a better place.

I would like to urge everyone not to be afraid to do this. There are more of us — hundreds of thousands and millions. A ridiculous thing is happening. A hundred people have seized power here. It can’t be that 140 million people are bowing down to a handful of freaks. These are just irrelevant former Komsomol members who later became democrats — and now they’ve turned into so-called “patriots.” They've just grabbed hold of everything. This is a mistake, one which will be corrected by our efforts.

“Lying has become the essence of state power”

Final statement in the “Yves Rocher case”

December 19, 2014

How many times in their life can a person who isn't involved in anything criminal or illegal speak his last word? None, zero times. Or maybe, if they're unlucky, it might happen once. Over the past year and a half, two years, including appeals and so on — this is my sixth, seventh, maybe the tenth last word. I've heard this phrase — “defendant Navalny, you are given the last word” — many times already. It appears that since it's the last word — for me, for someone, for everyone — that the last days are coming. They constantly demand that you say your last word. I've said it, but on the whole I see that the last days are not coming. And the main thing that convinces me of this is that if I took a photo of the three of you [judges], or better still, a photo of you together with the counsel for the so-called victims in this case, you are the people with whom I have spent my recent days. I call you “people who look down at the table.” Do you even notice that you are constantly looking down at the table? You’re looking down at the table. I am talking to you but you’re looking down at the table all the time. None of you have anything to say.

The most popular phrase, you definitely know it, that's being said to me — by investigators, prosecutors, FSIN [prison service] employees — anyone really, judges in civil cases, criminal cases, say this phrase most often: “Alexei Anatolyevich, you understand the situation.” I understand the situation. But I don't understand one thing: why do you keep looking the other way? I have no illusions. I understand perfectly well that none of you will jump up now, flip this desk over and say: “I've had enough! I'm leaving now!” And the Yves Rocher representatives won't stand up and say: “Navalny has convinced us with his eloquent words!”

Human nature is complex. Our minds shield us from overwhelming guilt, lest we self-destruct like beached dolphins. It's unfathomable to imagine someone returning home each day to confess: “Today I helped imprison an innocent person. I'm tormented now and will be forever.” People don't operate that way. Instead, they rationalize. They might say, “Alexei Anatolyevich, you understand the situation,” or “There's no smoke without fire,” or “You shouldn't have challenged Putin.” As the Investigative Committee representative put it: “If he hadn't drawn attention to himself, if he hadn't caused a scene and obstructed citizens, everything would likely have been fine.”

Yet it's crucial that I address you directly — those looking down at the table. My words may fall on deaf ears elsewhere in this room or among those who'll later read or watch this statement. But you represent the true battleground between the corrupt powers-that-be and ordinary citizens yearning for change.

We are fighting for the very people who look down at the table — for the ones who shrug their shoulders and do nothing. Even in situations where they could simply refrain from doing harm, they still choose to. There’s a well-known quote, often repeated today, from “To Kill a Dragon”: “Everyone was taught bad things, but how did you, scum, become top of the class?” This isn't aimed at a single court, but at the countless people who look down at the table. Some may be coerced into doing wrong, but more often, no one forces or even asks them. They just choose to look down at the table, to turn their backs and pretend not to see. Our fight is for those who look down at the table, to try to make you see the truth so you can stop ignoring it and face the reality: everything, tragically, in our beautiful country, is built on endless lies. I stand here now, and I am prepared to stand here as many times as it takes to prove to you all that I will not tolerate these lies. I refuse to accept them. The deceit is everywhere, from the first word to the last. Do you understand?

They tell me that there are no Russian interests in Turkmenistan, yet they claim we must go to war for the interests of Russians in Ukraine. They insist that Russians in Chechnya face no oppression and deny any issues there. They dismiss allegations of corruption in Gazprom, even when I present documents showing that specific officials own unregistered property and companies. Their response: “None of this exists.” When I say we are ready to challenge them in elections, that we have registered a party and taken many steps, they dismiss it as nonsense. They claim to win elections and say that we are excluded not because they do not allow us, but because of minor errors in our paperwork. Everything is based on lies — constant, hourly lies. The more evidence we present, the more lies we encounter. These lies are no longer just a state mechanism — they have become the essence of state power. We listen to top officials, and their speeches are filled with lies from start to finish, in both major claims and minor details. Just yesterday, Putin declared: “We don't have palaces.” Yet we photograph these palaces three times a month, publish the photos, and still hear, “We don't have palaces. We don’t have oligarchs feeding off the state.” Meanwhile, documents show how the head of Russian Railways is transferring half of the state corporation’s assets to offshore companies in Cyprus and Panama.

Why tolerate these lies? Why just look down at the table? I apologize for getting philosophical, but life is too short to be passive. In the grand scheme, what does it all mean? I'm nearing forty and haven't had the chance to fully take in the world. Before I know it, I'll have grandchildren, and then, eventually, I'll be on my deathbed with relatives thinking, “if only he'd pass away and free up space.” At some point we are going to realize that what we didn’t do — the things we looked at the table and were silent about — were not worth anything whatsoever. The moments that truly matter are those when we act with integrity, when we don’t just look down at the table but face each other honestly. Those are the moments that give life meaning. Everything else has no meaning.

For me, this is a deeply painful situation. The Kremlin’s strategy is particularly cruel — it’s not just about imprisoning me, but about dragging innocent people into this mess as well. Take Ofitserov, for instance, who has five children. I have to look his wife in the eyes, knowing the injustice they face. Many people from the Bolotnaya case were imprisoned not for any real reason, but to intimidate me and other opposition leaders. Now my brother is caught in the same web. He has a wife and two children, and I have to manage this burden with my parents' support, for which I am deeply grateful.

Tell them all: yes, they use this tactic to hurt me, dragging other innocent people into this as if with a locomotive. But I’ll say this plainly: even taking hostages won’t deter me. Life loses its meaning if you tolerate endless lies and agree to everything without reason.

I will never condone the current system in our country, which is designed to exploit everyone in this room. The structure is essentially a junta — a literal junta of twenty billionaires who have seized everything, from government contracts to oil revenues. Around a thousand people, primarily corrupt deputies, benefit from this system. Only a small percentage of the active population opposes this, while millions remain passive. I will not cease my fight against this junta. I will keep pushing, agitating — call it what you will — to mobilize those who are passive, including everyone here. I will never stop this struggle.

“I will never condone the current system in our country, which is designed to exploit everyone in this room”

You know, I don't regret calling people to take part in an unauthorized protest. That action on Lubyanka, which sparked everything, didn't succeed, but I don’t regret it for a second. I don't regret my efforts in fighting corruption, in conducting investigations, and so on. A few years ago, when we were reviewing the case of either Gazprom or VTB, attorney Kobzev told me something that has stuck with me: “Alexei, they will definitely put you in jail. Sooner or later, they will put you in jail.”

It's clear that the human mind finds ways to push aside the constant fear of “they'll put me in jail.” It’s a thought that gets suppressed, but I remain fully aware of it. Despite this, I don’t regret any of my actions. I will continue to call on people to engage in collective actions and to exercise their right to freedom of assembly. Yes, I believe people have a legitimate right to revolt against an unjust, corrupt government — against a junta that has seized everything and siphoned trillions of dollars out of our country through oil and gas sales. And what have we received in return? Nothing. In this regard, I repeat what I said during the Kirovles case: nothing has changed. We, by looking the other way, allowed them to rob us. We allowed them to take this stolen wealth to Europe and to reduce us to a state of submission. What have we gained? What have they given you, those of you who look down at the table? Nothing! Do we have good healthcare? No, we don’t. Is there quality education? No, there isn’t. Have they provided us with good roads? No, they haven’t.

What’s the salary of a court clerk? A bailiff makes at most 35,000 rubles a month. It’s a paradoxical situation: a small group of criminals robs all of us — every single one of you, every single day — and we all tolerate it. I refuse to accept this. No matter how long I have to stay here, whether it's right next to this cage or inside it, I will remain steadfast. In closing, I want to emphasize that the authorities have succeeded in inflicting pain on my family and loved ones. Although they support me fully, none of them ever intended to become political activists. Therefore, there is no justification for imprisoning my brother for eight years — or at all. He had no intention of engaging in political activities. Our family has already endured enough suffering. There’s no need to exacerbate it further. As I’ve said before, taking hostages will not deter me. However, I see no reason for the authorities to further torment these hostages now.

I appeal to absolutely everyone — this may sound naive, and people often laugh and smirk at such words — but to live without lies. There is no other choice. In our country today, no other solution exists. I want to thank everyone for their support. I want to urge everyone to live without lies. I want to say that I am absolutely sure that I will be isolated and imprisoned, and so on. But as they say, someone else will take my place. There is nothing unique or difficult about what I have been doing. Everything I do can be done by anyone out there. I am confident that within the Anti-Corruption Foundation and elsewhere, there will be people who will continue this work, no matter the outcome of these court cases, which exist solely to create a facade of legality. Thank you.

“Now the power is on your side, but this won't last forever”

Final statement in court on the appeal against a 30-day extension of detention

January 28, 2021

Typically, one reviews a court decision, identifies legal violations, and addresses them during an appeal. But in this case, the entire process is a blatant violation of the law — a flagrant disregard for legal norms.

Have you, your Honor, read the minutes from the court hearing from Khimki? If you have, you ought to have laughed at the entire Moscow Regional Court, because it’s truly laughable. It is the most ridiculous document imaginable. It’s hard to believe that anyone with any legal education could have compiled it. What has transpired is simply inconceivable.

Esteemed court and participants in this process, I have long observed the steady decline of our judicial system. I’ve seen enough to be accustomed to the fact that many laws simply don’t apply to me. But recently, new dimensions have emerged. While in a cell — inside a police station — I was told that I would be taken to meet with my defense counsel. They led me to a room that resembled a makeshift courtroom, complete with cameras, an audience, and a flag of the Russian Federation. They informed me that this would be the setting for my trial. I was astonished. How could this be? My bewildered counsel, who had only just learned about this arrangement, were left trying to make sense of the situation. Meanwhile, everything was already set up — an audience, journalists, all prepared — inside the police station!

To be honest, I wondered if this was some sort of elaborate prank, or a staged event.

Perhaps the wing panels will retract, revealing a crowd of laughing people — or even Putin himself, coming out to say, “Ha-ha, Alexei, we decided to play a joke on you! You've been away for five months, but everything is fine and everything will be handled according to the law!” Because, truly, it’s inconceivable for a trial to be held inside a police station. It’s simply impossible! Your Honor, after the Khimki court session concluded, I was immediately handed papers to sign, sent from the Simonovsky court to SIZO-1 [pre-trial detention facility] regarding my case. This happened just moments after the Khimki court's decision. It seems the Simonovsky court was already prepared for my presence here even while the Khimki court was still in session.

I have no doubt that while my plane was still en route from Vnukovo [airport] to Sheremetyevo, a cell was already being prepared for me here in Matrosskaya Tishina [jail]. They could have at least shown some sense of discretion or delayed the paperwork a bit to make it seem that some time was needed for the Simonovsky court to draft and deliver its decision to Khimki before forwarding it. But no, they didn't even make an effort to hide it. They handed me the papers instantly, as if it were just routine business at SIZO-1. It's astonishing! Your Honor, does it not concern you, even slightly, that we are essentially discussing a case involving the conversion of my suspended sentence into actual imprisonment? This situation is absurd! Yet we are deliberating it as if it were normal, despite the process being fundamentally flawed. Here I am, surrounded by FSIN officers, yet no one in SIZO-1 seems to understand why I am here or what my status is. I am officially detained, but why am I in a pre-trial detention center? How can I be detained for a month without even being formally arrested? This entire situation is perplexing.

The document detailing my detention at Sheremetyevo Airport clearly states: “Restraint measure,” followed by “none.” So if there is no restraint measure, why is the most frequent instruction I've heard over the past few days: “Please keep your hands behind your back”?

If no restraint measure is in place, why am I being held here? This situation is utterly baffling! The court's ruling cites a series of articles under which I could be detained for 30 days, none of which apply to me. They simply don’t pertain to my case. If you examine the criminal procedure code and the criminal code, you'll see that the referenced statutes are irrelevant to me. It appears the Khimki court just said, “Let's pick random numbers — 234, 328, 344.”

They simply selected some random statutes that have no relevance to my case. As my attorney Olga Mikhailova correctly pointed out, a court session can’t just materialize out of nowhere. This session is occurring because my defense team and I filed an appeal, which led to the scheduling of this court session. Now we’re here, in the middle of it.

So how did this happen in the Khimki court? I asked the judge who scheduled the hearing, but I received no answer. I asked who rescheduled it, and again received no answer. This is unacceptable! If the Khimki court operates like this, then perhaps the judge should don a robe, take a gavel, and walk through the Moscow metro, arbitrarily declaring people arrested. If she has such extraordinary authority to conduct hearings without proper scheduling, then she should be free to issue judgments at random in the streets.

So, I have an answer as to why all this is happening in this way: because that was the goal. Not just lawlessness. Lawlessness is something familiar in Russia. This is demonstrative lawlessness! To intimidate both me and everyone else.

This demonstrative lawlessness is committed not even by judges (because the judges here are just obedient slaves), but by those people who have robbed our country for twenty years. They want to silence everyone like me. And it's not just about me, but about a huge number of people represented by me. Because they simply want to demonstrate and show once again: we can do this. Land a plane somewhere else? We’ll land it, we don’t care about the passengers. Shut down Sheremetyevo? We’ll do it! You think we can’t put you on trial at a police station? We’ll try you there! Demonstratively! To scare everyone. To tell everyone once more: we are the masters of this country.

So, I want to conclude my speech, my opinion on this appeal, by saying confidently that they are not the masters of our country and never will be. And a huge number of people, tens of millions, agree with me. We will never allow or permit these people, who have seized and stolen our country — yes, right now the power is on your side, and right now you [authorities] have the ability to put one person next to me, and another, and handcuff me — but this will not last forever.

Thank you very much, I support the appeal and demand my release.

“I deeply offended Putin by surviving”

Final statement in court during a Russian Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) hearing on replacing Navalny's suspended sentence with a prison term

February 2, 2021

I would like to begin by addressing a crucial legal issue that seems to have been somewhat overshadowed in this discussion. The situation is quite perplexing. We have two individuals here — one arguing that I should be imprisoned for appearing on Thursdays instead of Mondays, and the other claiming it’s for failing to report to the inspectorate after waking up from a coma. While this debate continues, focusing on days of the week and procedural errors, I want to highlight the core issue. The real crux of the matter is that this case is about imprisoning me for charges for which I have already been acquitted and which have been acknowledged as fabricated.

If we consult any criminal law textbook — one hopes, your Honor, you have done this at least a few times in your career — we will find that the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) is an integral part of the judicial system, including in Russia. Its decisions are binding. After exhausting all domestic legal avenues, I took my case to the ECHR, which ruled clearly that not even the elements of a crime were present. The case for which I am currently detained in this dubious cage is entirely fabricated. Not only did Russia acknowledge the ECHR ruling — albeit begrudgingly — but I was also compensated, further validating the ECHR's decision. Despite this, my brother served three and a half years in prison for this case, and I spent a year under house arrest. When my probation was nearing its end, I was arrested just a week before it was set to expire, brought before your Simonovsky court, and assigned a court-appointed lawyer — with no opportunity for a proper defense — resulting in the extension of my probation for another year.

Let's do a little math. In 2014, I was sentenced to three and a half years of probation, and now it’s 2021, and I’m still being tried for this case. I’ve already been acquitted, and there is no crime in this case. Yet with the persistence of a maniac, the state insists on imprisoning me for this case. Why this case? It’s not like there’s a shortage of criminal cases against me. Yet for some reason, someone really wants to make sure I never set foot on my country's soil as a free person. From the moment I crossed the border, I became a prisoner.

We know who is behind this and why. The motive stems from the hatred and fear of one man residing in a bunker. I have affronted him merely by surviving an assassination attempt he ordered. I insulted him further by surviving thanks to the help of brave pilots and doctors, and then by not retreating into a smaller, safer hideaway. The worst part, however, is that not only did I survive, I faced my situation head-on and participated in the investigation into my poisoning. We proved that it was Putin, using the FSB, who orchestrated the attempt on my life. I’m not the only one who knows this — many do, and more will find out. This exposure drives that small, corrupt man in his bunker to madness. It’s the fact that his actions were revealed that torments him.

There are no approval ratings, no massive support [for Vladimir Putin] — none of that exists. It turns out that to neutralize a political opponent who lacks media presence and a political party, the only method available is to attempt to kill him using chemical weapons. Of course, [Putin’s] going insane. Everyone now sees him for what he is: a bureaucrat who stumbled into the presidency without ever participating in debates or elections. His sole tactic for dealing with opposition is to resort to murder. No matter how much he tries to present himself as a great geopolitical figure, a great world leader, his main resentment against me is that history will remember him as a poisoner. While others are known as Alexander the Liberator or Yaroslav the Wise, he will be known as Vladimir the Poisoner.

“Despite Putin's attempts to project himself as a major geopolitical figure or a global leader, his deepest frustration is that he will be remembered in history as a poisoner”

Here I stand, surrounded by police, with the National Guard on the scene and half of Moscow cordoned off. All because a petty man in a bunker is losing his grip on reality. We've exposed that he isn’t engaged in serious geopolitics; rather, he's conducting meetings where he plans how to steal politicians' personal items, smear them with military-grade poison, and attempt to kill them. The true purpose of this process isn’t even about my imprisonment — whether or not I am jailed for this case or another. The real objective is to intimidate a vast number of people. This is the strategy: imprison one to scare millions. We have twenty million people living below the poverty line, tens of millions with no prospects, and the daily narrative that “life in Moscow is bearable, but just a hundred kilometers away, it's a disaster.” Our entire country is mired in chaos and despair, with people earning barely 20,000 rubles a month. They remain silent, subdued by these show trials. Imprison one person to frighten millions. When someone protests, arrest five more to intimidate fifteen million.

The key point I want to make is that this process should not be seen as a signal for people to be more fearful. What’s happening here — the presence of the National Guard, this cage — it's not a display of power, but of abject weakness. You can't imprison millions or even hundreds of thousands. I hope people will increasingly come to understand this. And when that realization dawns — because it will — this entire system will crumble. You can’t confine an entire country. We live in a nation rich in resources, yet its people see no benefit. The number of billionaires increases while the rest of us face rising prices for basics like butter, pasta, and eggs. In 2021, a country that exports oil and gas is plagued by soaring food prices. You’ve stripped people of their prospects and tried to intimidate them. I urge everyone not to be afraid. What I’ve said here isn’t just a response to the case at hand. It’s my perspective on the farce that’s been orchestrated.

Now, there are times when lawlessness and arbitrariness are the essence of a political system, and that’s terrible, but there’s something even worse: when lawlessness and arbitrariness don the uniform of a prosecutor or the robe of a judge. In this case, it is everyone’s duty not to obey the laws that are clothed in these robes. It is everyone’s duty not to obey you, not to obey such laws. (…)

When arbitrariness and lawlessness don your uniforms and pretend to be the law, it becomes the duty of every honest person to resist and fight back. I am doing my best to fight, and I will continue to do so, even though I am currently at the mercy of those who resort to using military-grade poison. My life may seem worth little in their eyes right now, but I remain committed to opposing them. I urge everyone not to be intimidated and to ensure that the law, not those cloaked in uniforms and robes, prevails. I extend my respect to all who stand up and are unafraid. I thank the staff of the Anti-Corruption Foundation who are currently detained and all those across the country who bravely take to the streets. They have the same rights as anyone else, and this country belongs to them just as much as it belongs to anyone else. We are all citizens who demand proper justice, fair treatment, a role in elections, and a share in our national wealth. Yes, we demand all of this.

And I also want to say this: there are many good things in Russia right now, and the best thing is the very people who aren’t afraid, who don’t avert their gaze, who don’t look down at the table, and who will never hand over the country to a bunch of corrupt officials who have decided to trade our homeland for palaces, vineyards, and aqua-discos.

My opinion is that I demand immediate release, immediate freedom for myself and the other detainees. I do not recognize this entire spectacle. It is a total fabrication. It does not comply with the law, and I demand immediate release.

“I am not afraid, and I urge everyone else not to be afraid”

From a speech at an external session of the Lefortovo Court at Correctional Colony No. 2 (IK-2) in the town of Pokrov, Vladimir Region, on February 15, 2021.

I am not afraid — neither of this court, nor of the prison colony, nor of the FSB, nor of the prosecutors, nor of weaponized chemicals, nor of Putin, nor of anyone else. I refuse to be intimidated, because I find it demeaning and pointless to fear such things. It is unacceptable to live in a state of submission. To accept the decay and dysfunction around us, such as the lack of proper roads in Pokrov in the 21st century, is beyond comprehension. People earn a meager 14,000 rubles a month, yet why should we accept such a reality? Why should anyone? We are organizing our efforts and will continue to do so. I firmly believe I have the right to participate in elections, and I will pursue that right. Whether I will participate or hold any position depends on the people — the voters who will decide based on my actions.

Honestly, I'm unsure if I need to address the part of this peculiar case related to alleged insults. At first, I wondered if I was missing something. Combining fraud and insults in a single case is already unusual. But have you read what they consider to be insults? It’s hard not to laugh. For instance, one of the alleged insults is: “Your Honor, you are breaking the law.” Your Honor, even in this phrase, “You” is capitalized to show respect. Is it truly insulting to say, “Your Honor, you are breaking the law”? We discussed this in court today. I said, “You are breaking the law,” and you responded, “No, I’m not,” and referred to something else. We had a discussion. Is this really considered an insult to the judge?

Is saying “I’m waiting for you to finish” an insult to the prosecutor or the judge? And what about my so-called favorite insult: “Oh my God”? Your Honor, if you’re going to hold trials over the phrase “oh my God,” I shudder to think what’s next. If someone truly believes that saying “oh my God” warrants a trial, they should have charged me with insulting God himself, as if it were forbidden to invoke the Lord's name in vain. Who could I possibly have insulted with “oh my God”? I see this for what it is: an attempt to intimidate. If you speak out, if you don’t stay silent, if you don’t just nod obediently or fear them — judges and prosecutors with their stars and titles — then they will continue to fabricate criminal cases against you. Well, let them. Oh my God, let them. I refuse to be silenced. After two years of being followed by FSB agents, being poisoned with military-grade chemicals, spending twenty days in a coma, and another twenty in hallucinations, it’s absurd to be afraid of your court. I wasn’t afraid before, and I certainly won’t be now.

In conclusion, I want to state that we will address and dismantle each lie presented in this proceeding. However, there’s really nothing to refute: the claims that I spent money on personal needs are baseless — there's simply no evidence. We will thoroughly review and disprove each point. But I also understand — this isn’t my first trial, and I’m not naive — that the verdict will likely be guilty, and the sentence will be severe. The reality is this: because I angered your leader, Putin, by not only surviving, but also returning, the message is clear: ‘if he thinks he’s so resilient, let him spend his life in prison. He returned, and now he will face endless trials and extended sentences.’

Well, what can be done? I believe that the work I’m doing, along with that of my colleagues, is far more significant than the fate of any single person. The real crime would be to succumb to fear — fear of you and those who back you. I want to emphasize once again that I am not afraid, and I urge everyone watching through this camera to share that courage. There is nothing to fear here. What we should truly fear is living our lives in poverty and degradation, leaving behind a legacy of servility and hopelessness for our children. This endless wait for a better life will never end as long as a gang of thieves remains in power. Thank you.

“Whoever is on the side of truth will win”

Final statement in court on February 20, 2021 during an appeal against replacing a suspended sentence with a prison term

I am delivering my final statement. This trial will soon end, and then I’ll have the next trial, and there will be another final statement. Probably, if someone wanted to publish all my final statements, it would make for quite a thick book. I think there's a kind of symbolic message in all this that the authorities, and the owner of the marvelous palace, Vladimir Putin, are sending me: “It all looks strange, but we can do this — just watch.” You know, like a juggler and magician in court, spinning a ball first on one finger, then on his head, they’re saying: “Look, we can spin this judicial system on any part of our body. How can you stand against us? We can do whatever we want, just watch.” Honestly, it seems to me that this kind of bravado is apparent not only to me but to ordinary people watching this. It makes a heavy impression on them, because everyone thinks: “What chances do I have to get anything done if I face the judicial system?”

Nevertheless, it’s my final statement, so I have to say something. I don’t know what topic to address, your Honor. Would you like me to talk to you about God and salvation? I could turn up the “pathos dial” to the max. The thing is, I am a believer, which is often the subject of jokes among the people at the Anti-Corruption Foundation. Now I am a believer, and it helps me a lot in my work, because everything becomes much, much simpler: I think less, and I face fewer dilemmas in my life because there is a book that more or less clearly outlines what needs to be done in every situation. It’s not always easy to follow that book, of course, but I try, and that makes it easier for me.

Recently, someone wrote to me: “Navalny, people keep telling you to hang in there, not to give up, to endure. What are you enduring? After all, in interviews you’ve said you believe in God, and it says: 'Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.' So, things should be great for you, right?” And I thought, this person understands me well — not that things are great, but I’ve always viewed that precept as a guide for action. Although I’m not exactly enjoying where I am, I don’t have any regrets about returning or about what I’m doing. Because I did everything right. On the contrary, I feel a kind of satisfaction because, in a difficult moment, I acted as instructed, without betraying that precept.

Of course, for modern people, that precept — ”Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled” — sounds pompous and strange. People who say such things are assumed to be some kind of crazy, oddball individuals, sitting in their cells with disheveled hair, trying to cheer themselves up with something, though of course they are lonely, because they are not needed by anyone. And that’s a key thing — the authorities and our entire system try to tell such people: “You’re alone, you’re a loner.” First, it’s important to instill fear, and then to prove that you’re alone, because what kind of normal, sane person believes in this nonsense, in precepts? This notion of loneliness is a crucial goal for the authorities. One of the great philosophers, Luna Lovegood (remember her from “Harry Potter”), put it very well. When talking to Harry Potter, she said: “It’s important not to feel alone, because if I were Voldemort, I’d very much want you to feel alone.” Our own Voldemort in the palace surely wants this too.

The guards here are great guys, and in my prison they are okay too, but they don’t talk to me — they’ve been forbidden to, apparently. This is another key point: to make you feel constantly isolated. But I don’t feel it at all, because that precept — ”Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” — may seem exotic or odd, but in reality, it is the main political idea in Russia right now.

Your Honor, what is the most popular slogan in Russia? It’s “What is strength?” That’s right! Strength is in the truth. This is the essence of the beatitude, just without any “for” or “those who thirst.” In essence, that’s exactly what it is, and the whole country repeats in every way that strength is in the truth. Whoever has the truth will win. This is very important. Despite the fact that our country is built on injustice, and we constantly face it, the worst kind of injustice is armed injustice. Nevertheless, we see that tens of millions of people want the truth, they strive for the truth, and sooner or later, they will achieve it — they will be filled.

There is a palace, and it's obvious to everyone. You can say it's not yours, but it exists. There are poor people — you can talk all you want about our high standard of living, but the country is poor, and everyone sees it. And these people should be rich. That is the truth, and you can’t argue against it. Sooner or later, the people who seek the truth will achieve it.

What’s crucial to understand is that we should not fear those who fight for the truth. Many are concerned about the potential for revolution, chaos, and upheaval. But consider how much better life could be without the constant lies and deceit. Imagine a world where honesty prevails — what an extraordinary situation that would be. Picture a judge who operates independently, unburdened by external pressures, able to serve as a respected pillar of society, with a good salary and the genuine respect of the community. Imagine returning home to your family, knowing that you have made decisions based solely on the law, and that all judges are equally independent. That would be truly exceptional. Similarly, envision a prosecutor working within a fair legal system in which they engage in real legal battles, prosecuting or defending genuine criminals. I refuse to believe that people become prosecutors to fabricate cases or forge signatures. No one joins the police force to boast about cracking heads at protests or to escort innocent people to jail. People want to be effective police officers. The lies and corruption we face today yield only drawbacks. They don’t bring higher pay. Every business in this country is worth half as much as it should be because there is no judicial system, because there is injustice, because there is chaos and poverty. It would be much better if those who seek the truth achieved it.

No one in the world ever dreamt, as a bright-eyed schoolchild, saying: “I want to join the FSB so that one day I can be sent to wash the underwear of an opposition figure, because someone smeared it with poison.” There are no such people. Everyone wants to have a respectable job catching terrorists and spies. And it’s very important not to be afraid of people who seek the truth — and maybe even support them or at least not contribute to lies, not make the world around you worse. Of course, there is a small risk in this, but first of all, it’s small. And secondly, as another modern philosopher, Rick Sanchez, said: “To live is to risk it all, otherwise you’re just an inert chunk of randomly assembled molecules drifting wherever the universe blows you.”

“To live is to risk it all, otherwise you’re just an inert lump of randomly assembled molecules drifting wherever the universe blows you”

The last thing I want to say is that I receive a ton of letters now, and every other letter ends with the phrase: “Russia will be free.” It’s a great slogan. I say it all the time, repeat it, write it back in response, chant it at rallies. But I always feel like something is missing. Of course, I want Russia to be free — this is necessary, but it’s not enough. It can’t be a goal in itself. I want Russia to be wealthy in a way that corresponds to the abundance of its national resources. I want these national resources to be more fairly distributed, so that everyone gets their share of the “oil and gas pie.” I want Russia not only to be free, but to have decent healthcare, so that men can live to retirement age, because right now half of the men in Russia don’t, and it’s not much better for women. I want education to be decent, and for people to have access to real learning. I want people to be paid the same for their work in Russia as they would for a similar job in an average European country, because right now they are paid much less. Any profession — police officer, programmer, journalist, you name it — everyone earns much less. I want many other things to happen in this country, and that’s why we need to fight not just against the fact that Russia is unfree, but against the fact that it is, in general, unhappy in all respects. Russia, despite having everything, remains an unhappy nation. Open any piece of great Russian literature, and it's filled with descriptions of misery and suffering. We are a very unhappy nation, and we can’t seem to break free from this cycle of unhappiness. But of course, we want to. That’s why I propose changing the slogan and saying that Russia should not only be free — Russia should be happy. Russia will be happy. That’s all I have to say.

“Your emperor with no clothes has stolen the Victory Banner and wants to make a thong out of it”

Final statement in court during the appeal hearing on the verdict in the defamation case against a veteran

April 29, 2021

I want to tell you, my dear court, that the emperor has no clothes, and it's not just a small boy saying it — it's apparent to everyone. Twenty years of utterly incompetent rule have led to this outcome. His crown is slipping over his ears, the media is filled with lies, and he has amassed enormous personal wealth.

We’ve squandered trillions from oil and gas, yet our country continues to regress and deteriorate. It’s no wonder that prominent Russian economists are coming together to declare these years as lost decades. This is obvious even without the need for economic experts.

I’m serving my sentence in a penal colony right now, in the regional center of Vladimir, 200 kilometers from Moscow. There isn’t a single decent, paved road here. The average salary is 30,000 rubles a month. This is the 21st century, in an oil- and gas-rich country that claims to be a world leader. Your naked, corrupt emperor wants to keep ruling forever. He doesn’t care about the country at all. He has a death grip on power and wants to hold onto it without end. If he stays in power, we’ll face another decade like this one — an era of stolen years will follow the lost ones. Since this is becoming more apparent to everyone, and more and more people are seeing that the emperor has no clothes, he must realize that he’s powerless to improve the country. He’s desperately searching for bits of sanctity to steal and use for his own purposes. That's what has been happening for years with our people's victory in the Great Patriotic War. He’s trying to claim it as his own victory, selling it off left and right. This whole trial is about exactly that: your naked emperor stole the Victory Banner and is trying to make a thong out of it.

This is what you’ve witnessed throughout this trial. Fundamentally, your authority represents that of occupiers and traitors. I consider all of you traitors, because under the leadership of your exposed emperor, you’re enacting a plan that reads like something out of a history textbook — a plan to subjugate Russia, to turn Russians into slaves, and to strip them of their wealth, education, healthcare, and future. This is exactly what you’ve done — you’ve put that plan into action. Two hundred thousand people leave the country every year. Our population is declining by the millions, and people see no future here. The evidence in this case clearly exposes the nature of this regime, exemplified by the Moscow prosecutor, whose villas in Spain and hotel in Montenegro I personally investigated. I even stayed in a room at his hotel in Montenegro.

This prosecutor, a government official, is stealing millions and investing it abroad. Now, in a closed trial, he’s trying to label me and patriots like me, who are trying to defend our country from you, as “extremists” and “foreign agents.”

I want to say that no matter how much you hide behind lies, no matter how hard you try to steal sanctity and snatch the Victory Banner from the museum for your own use, it won’t work. Your occupation regime…

(The judge, Vera Akimova, interrupts Navalny.)

You know everything I’m saying is true. And I’m being incredibly kind to you, considering that I see all of you as traitors and an occupying force. Russia has been invaded by occupying powers and administrations many times before. Your occupation is quite successful because, for twenty years, you’ve managed to rob the people of this country, strip them of their future, and take away the wealth that belongs to them. But this will end — sooner or later.

“Those who want to fight war must fight only despotism”

From the final statement during a visiting session of the Lefortovo District Court of Moscow in Correctional Colony No. 2 in the city of Pokrov (regarding charges of 'fraud' and 'contempt of court')

March 15, 2022

(During Navalny’s speech, the broadcast was repeatedly interrupted.)

(...) Since 2000 there’s been an enormous inflow of petrodollars, but since 2013 people’s incomes have been steadily declining. The only thing going up is the number of billionaires. Everyone else is getting poorer, while only the thousand Putin-linked families, who have grabbed hold of all the money, our future, and our present, respond with war. Economists talk about a lost decade. Did we lose it?

Did we just walk down the road and accidentally drop it? No. It has been stolen! And now, to silence those who speak out about it, and to deafen those who hear it, they need this war…

(The broadcast cuts off.)

The consequence of all this will be the collapse, the breakup of our country. It sounds crazy, but the phrase “Russian-Ukrainian war” also sounded crazy once. I said in this courtroom when the trial began that anyone who thinks there will be a war is insane. Yet the mantra about our country’s breakup is becoming more and more plausible. All there is [in the Kremlin] is just a group of crazy old men. They don’t care about anyone or anything. The last thing they care about is our country. Their homeland is their Swiss bank accounts. No matter how much they try to wrap it in patriotism, it’s all a myth. And it’s a great threat to all of us. What must be done is clear. Every person’s duty now is to fight against the war.

It is said: “Peacemakers will be called the children of God.” It’s far better to be a free child of God than a Putin stooge, who will be roasted by devils in hell. (...)

Still, the question arises: what more can be done beyond just holding a sign saying “No to war,” although that’s very good and right? Personally, I find the answer in one of our great compatriots, someone I’ve often seen. I’ve looked into his eyes frequently during this trial, under rather, shall we say, intimate circumstances.

You know that to enter this courtroom, you have to pass through a so-called “search point.” You strip down, take everything off. Everything is inspected. I go through this process at least four times a day, and when I have frequent breaks, it’s eight times a day. Since all the rooms are occupied (...), and there’s a school for inmates, this happens in a Russian language classroom. So, in the Russian language classroom, this happens every day, several times a day. And every day, an officer (...) has my underwear in his hands, checking it with a metal detector. And I stand there naked, staring at the wall, while Leo Tolstoy — a great Russian man who spoke much of war and said many wise things — looks back at me from the wall. One of his words I’ve memorized forever, because he wrote it in his diary on June 4, is: “War is the work of despotism. Without despotism, there could be no war; there could be fights, but not war. Despotism produces war, and war sustains despotism. Those who want to fight war must fight only despotism.”

“I despise your court, I despise your system, and I despise your power”

From the final statement in court on the appeal against the sentence for 'contempt of court' and 'fraud'

May 24, 2022

(...) My sentence implies that I was in contempt of the court and showed no respect for it. You know, you understand perfectly well that no one in Russia respects the court. It's essentially an institution that has no respect anywhere. People are indeed afraid of it because individuals in black robes, acting completely unlawfully — as they do with me and many others — can, in fact, send you to prison, and so people fear them. But no one respects the Russian court, and I certainly don’t respect it. However, this law about being in contempt of the court isn’t a scholarly approach. If there were a law about contempt for the court and contempt for this government, that would suit me perfectly, because I despise your court, I despise your system, and I despise your power. And most importantly — which, as I believe, is the real crime in your eyes — I am not afraid of this system. I am not afraid of it. Of course, I don’t want to sit in this cage when I could be doing something useful and watching my children grow up. But life is not given to a person to live in fear of some crazy old man in a bunker and the system he built. So I am not afraid of you! And once again, I urge everyone else not to be afraid. After all, what can they do to you? They’ll lock you up in a cage. But your system relies on fear, and being afraid of you is a crime against one’s own future, a crime against one’s children, a crime against one’s people. (...)

I turn on the TV, and they show me how someone is killing Russians, oppressing Russians, or doing something else to Russians. But it is you, your system, your Putin, and your officials who are the true enemies of Russia right now, traitors to the Russian people and killers of the Russian people in the literal sense. In recent years, no one has killed more Russians than your Putin. (...) You don’t like it when I talk about the war, so I will use this war, which is happening right now — it’s a hundred times more important than my sentence — as a metaphor for your courts and your judicial processes. Because this war, like your courts, is entirely, 100% built on lies — on the most brazen lies. Not a single word of truth, not one. Just as there is not a single word of truth in the sentence, this war continues. I’ve been watching TV here all day, which is, in fact, an important part of the punishment: you have to watch TV all the time. A few months ago, for three months straight, they said in every report, every news story, every news broadcast: what nonsense, that we would send troops into Ukraine! That could never happen! It’s just that the Americans are lying. (...) Months of lies. And then, with a snap of the fingers, troops were sent in, and all those assurances were forgotten, as if they had never been made. It’s like everyone has the memory of a goldfish. Your government is indeed trying to make our entire population, our entire people, like goldfish, particularly in relation to the trials, the laws you change every day, so that people forget there was a law prohibiting me from participating in elections — the 'Navalny Law.' It’s all a web of lies. All the facts presented in the sentence are the same kind of false rubbish as all the facts used by the warmongers, or the other way around. When I hear about NATO on TV, I just laugh, because I’m not a goldfish. I remember how, in 2013, a NATO base was opened in the city of Ulyanovsk, and the Ulyanovsk governor talked about how great it was that we were opening a NATO base here to work in Afghanistan, because it was so cool, because it would create jobs, and NATO was a very friendly bloc to us. And you know who else strongly supported the NATO base? Dmitry Olegovich Rogozin. Does that name sound familiar? And now these same people are trying to convince us that we need to spill blood in a fight against NATO. Meanwhile, Finland and Sweden are joining NATO without a hitch, which makes the whole narrative feel a bit absurd, doesn’t it? I bring this up because it’s crucial to everything that's happening in Russia, including the Russian judicial system. The courts are full of blatant lies, where yesterday’s statements are ignored and reversed with the snap of a finger, as if they were never made. You switch positions mid-air, 180 degrees, not just frequently but constantly. Our government, our courts, and Putin zigzag through their decisions, always changing course to make people forget the lies they told just moments ago. (...)”

“And you know very well the reasons why this trial of yours takes place — or not. And the reasons lie in the fact that the people currently in power in Russia are insanely rich individuals who have started the war at least in part so that trials can be held in prisons, because against the backdrop of war, no one will notice it. (...) These trials of yours, including the one against me, are meaningless. What are you trying to achieve? Do you want to gain some kind of control? You will, indeed, get short-term control. Do you want to stop the progress of Russia? Do you want to fight against the rising generation? What is it you want to do? In the short term, you can certainly intimidate someone, bankrupt some people, ruin many lives, but in general, what you’re doing, what your people are doing, is meaningless. It’s a historical absurdity, and without a doubt, you will all face a historical defeat — just as you will face a historical defeat in this stupid war that you started, the one your Putin has started, because it has neither a goal nor meaning.

It’s completely unclear why this war is being waged in the first place. What’s the objective? We’ve labeled a nation of 40 million people as 'Nazis' and started bombing them. What exactly are they supposed to do to make this stop? Imagine this: someone in Kharkiv — a judge, for instance, living in a city of a million people, a major urban center. He has a normal life, is planning to take his child to kindergarten in the morning and then head to work at the courthouse. Then, on February 24, out of nowhere, he’s declared a Nazi. A missile hits his home, kills his child, and now he’s running around in shock, unable to comprehend what he could possibly do to get you and your government to stop. And here I sit in prison, and I’m ready to do so, to prove to the world — and, more importantly, to myself — that not everyone in Russia is as insane, deranged, perverted, and bloodthirsty as those who are slaughtering people for reasons that no one can understand, and being killed themselves as well. (...)

“I am ready to sit here in prison to prove to the whole world and to myself that not everyone in Russia is as insane, deranged, perverted, and bloodthirsty as those who are slaughtering people for no apparent reason and being killed themselves”

It’s incredibly important for me to stand here and explain to the court that everything in our country is broken, including the justice system — and it’s broken precisely so wars like this can be started. In these wars, beyond the obvious fact that we are killing innocent people for unclear reasons, we are also destroying our own people. As I’ve already mentioned, right here in the Vladimir region where I am imprisoned, the entire leadership of the local National Guard has been killed in action — four lieutenant colonels, all gone. It’s something both hidden and yet known to everyone. And why did they die? Because one madman has fixated on Ukraine. What exactly does he want from it? No one knows. This crazed thief has put a sick man in charge of the Russian National Guard — and these aren’t even my words. The former head of the president’s security service, Korzhakov, once said about General Zolotov: “I can’t call him a fool because he’s an imbecile.” So, when one thief hires an imbecile to wage a war... sure, they will kill many, but they too will be killed.

Judge Maria Dovzhenko: Alexey Anatolyevich, you are convicted of four counts under Part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Article 297.

Navalny: Article 159 of the Criminal Code [“fraud”] will be used time and again against the very people I’m talking about, along with other articles. These people, who steal, deceive, rob, and kill, keep people like me imprisoned so they can continue their corruption. That’s exactly why all this is happening, your Honor. Now, regarding Article 159, since you’re so insistent I address it, let me tell you something. I have thought about it constantly. Do you know when? On May 9th. On May 9th, the inmates and I were sitting in the room, solemn as always... The military parade was on TV. And there it was — the “Armata” tank rolled by again. They told us once more that the Armata is the best, that Russian troops are great. And I’m sitting there thinking: it’s 2022, and I’m watching this tank again. I saw the Armata in 2021, in 2020, in 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016. We’ve been shown this tank since 2015. But in the actual war, all I mostly see are T-72s — and maybe a few newer ones, but no Armata. So, about Article 159: maybe the reason we don’t see the Armata on the battlefield is because our supreme commander-in-chief is both a thief and a madman, and our defense minister is just a thief and a PR guy? (...)

What’s important is that the Lefortovo Court’s sentence is delivered in the name of the Russian Federation, yet it’s done this way because power in the Russian Federation has been hijacked by those who have lied to us for years — particularly about weapons — by those who start wars, kill both others and their own citizens, and have created a bloodbath for Russians and Ukrainians alike. As a consequence of this, trials like mine will multiply. And I want this to end. If my words can convince even one person, if I can do anything at all to help stop this, then I will continue to speak out. (...)

When I look at you, I see embodied in your face the very phrase “in the name of the Russian Federation.” I see Putin, Chemezov, Shoigu, and all those Golikovs and Khristenkos we’ve exposed — they’re all reflected in you. And there’s only one thing I want to say: life in our country would be so much better without you. Imagine how wonderful it could be! For the first time in centuries, we have no real enemies, no wars, and immense resources — endless money, oil, and gas. Russia is a wealthy, beautiful country without you. I wish you would all disappear, and that the basic principle of life here could simply be: live and let live. That we would stop meddling in Ukraine, stop interfering in the lives of others. That you, the judges, would stop harassing ordinary citizens, the National Guard would focus on protecting the public, prison guards would watch over actual criminals instead of political prisoners, and the police would solve real crimes instead of chasing people for social media likes. If you were all gone, and if everyone could just leave each other alone, we would finally live well.

But you're still here. And naturally, the most fitting quote from the most famous book about people like you comes to mind, one that's been used in similar situations throughout history: “This is your hour, and the power of darkness.” The fascinating part is that when I look at you, I realize that not only are you unbothered by these words, you’re energized by them. You fully understand that you represent the power of darkness and that this is your moment, but instead of feeling any shame or guilt, it emboldens you. You think, “Yes! We are the power of darkness, and this is our time to shine.” That’s who you are: villains who know exactly what you are, and you take pride in it. But I want to remind you: your time won’t last forever. Eventually, it will end. And when you’re all burning in hell, it won’t be just any flames consuming you — it will be your own ancestors, the ones whose portraits you’ve misused to start wars in the 21st century, fueling the fire beneath your pyres. That’s all I have to say. Thank you.

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Quoted from the publication: Not the Last Words: Speeches of Defendants and Political Prisoners (Second Edition) Freedom Letters, 2024. ISBN: 9781998265626

Cover photo: Dmitry Aleshkovsky.