‘100 Most Influential People’ List of Time Features Wife of Putin Critic Alexei Navalny, Yulia

This year’s Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People list includes Yulia Navalnaya, the late Russian opposition leader and Putin critic Alexei Navalny’s wife, in the “Leaders” category.

In her first interview since Navalny’s death on February 16 in an Arctic prison colony, Yulia told Time that she decided to go into politics to give her husband’s supporters hope and to let the Kremlin know that the anti-Putin resistance will continue, according to a report from The Moscow Times.

She said, “[Alexei and I] did not discuss [my entering politics]. I just believed that we cannot let this to occur. Yulia told the American news magazine, “If they think they can kill Alexei and that’s the end of it, they are wrong.”

After spending three years in prison on accusations that were mostly seen as “politically motivated,” Alexei Navalny, who gained international notoriety as a fervent opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, passed away in February.

US Vice President Kamala Harris referred to Yulia as a “courageous fighter” and praised her “exceptional selflessness and strength” in a quick response to Time’s listing of her. Harris said that the US supports her and everyone else fighting for liberty and democracy.

Now that Yulia Navalnaya has taken on her own leadership position on the global stage, it is to everyone’s advantage. Giving fresh hope to those fighting corruption and for a free, democratic Russia, Navalnaya has sworn to carry on her husband’s struggle for justice and the rule of law,” Harris said.

“Navalnaya has come to represent democratic principles as a brave warrior as well as a symbol of those virtues. The US vice president said, “The US stands with her—and all those fighting for freedom and democracy.”

Indian-born Together with Iranian human rights campaigner Narges Mohammadi, Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, Taiwan’s incoming president William Lai, and US government official Jigar Shah, the World Bank President Ajay Banga, and Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni were also named “Leaders.”

The magazine’s yearly list, which was revealed on Wednesday, is broken down into categories other than “Leaders,” such as “Icons” and “Titans.”