Donald Trump on Monday ended his lengthy silence on the death of Alexei Navalny, in a statement that avoided criticism of the Kremlin and instead portrayed the Russian opposition leader's sudden passing as a sign of a collapsing United States.
Alexei Navalny died in unexplained circumstances at age 47 in an Arctic prison last week, shocking Russia's exiled opposition as well as the West, where leaders have blamed President Vladimir Putin and authorities in Moscow.
But former US president Trump, who is leading in Republican Party primary polls ahead of the United States' November elections, had been mum on the issue -- in the face of growing criticism -- until a Monday social media post which focused on what he called a "failing" America.
"The sudden death of Alexei Navalny has made me more and more aware of what is happening in our country," Trump said on his Truth Social website.
"It is a slow, steady progression, with crooked, radical left politicians, prosecutors and judges leading us down a path to destruction."
Trump decried "open borders, rigged elections and grossly unfair courtroom decisions" in the United States, which he called "a nation in decline."
The post did not mention the Russian government or Putin.
Trump's initial silence on the matter had the day before drawn criticism from his main challenger for the Republican nomination.
"The fact that he won't acknowledge anything with Alexei Navalny -- either he sides with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and thinks it's cool that Putin killed one of his political opponents, or he just doesn't think it's that big of a deal," Nikki Haley said on ABC's "This Week."
"Either one of those is concerning. Either one of those is a problem," added Nikki Haley, who is trailing far behind Trump in the Republican primary.
Trump recently stunned Western allies after saying he would "encourage" Russia to attack members of the NATO military alliance who had not met their financial obligations.
Putin has long been admired by certain strains in the US hard-right, including by Trump, who has a history of praising the Kremlin leader, for example calling him a "genius" and more credible than US intelligence.
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