Kiev's Mayor Vitali Klitschko told dpa on Saturday that the timing of the death of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny - just three hours before the planned start of the Munich Security Conference attended by major Western leaders - is not a coincidence.
"I don't think this is a coincidence," said Klitschko, a former professional boxer turned politician.
He blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin for Navalny's death, saying Putin calls all the shots in Russia.
"This is a dictatorship," he said. Anyone there who disagrees with Putin is murdered or imprisoned, he added.
Yet the Kiev mayor and two-time winner of the world heavyweight boxing championship, hopes that opposition to Putin's regime will now also grow in Russia.
"Everyone is afraid to speak out against it," he admitted. However, there is "a critical mass" that has lost relatives in the war in Ukraine and is dissatisfied with Putin's government. They could not remain silent, he said.
