State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin has urged Russian politicians not to investigate allegations of corruption against Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.
Volodin, who previously served as President Putin's deputy chief of staff, said it would be "wrong" for parliament to conduct an inquiry into the claims, Russia's RBC news outlet reported.
"Supporting this initiative means supporting [opposition politician Alexei] Navalny,” Volodin
said, according to one
source. “There is an understanding among all factions that we have to unite to defend the prime minister from the attacks of Navalny, who is singing with the voice of the Western intelligence services.”
The Russian parliament will consider a Communist Party proposal to conduct an inquiry into allegations on Wednesday, RBC reported, citing two unidentified sources.
Allegations against the prime minister stem from Alexey Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, which accused Medvedev on March 2 of channeling bribes through non-profit organizations. A related YouTube video detailing the allegations has since been watched more than 17 million times, and sparked protests throughout Russia on March 26.
Volodin dismissed the film as spreading "false information," according to a second RBC source. He also reportedly said he did not see the point of a review since “there is no injured party, or bribe-taking.”
Medvedev reacted to Navalny's investigation for the first time on Tuesday, calling the allegations “politically motivated.” True to Kremlin tradition, he did not mention Navalny by name.
