Kremlin says glad Navalny is recovering, says he's welcome back in Russia

FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny takes part in a rally to mark the 5th anniversary of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov's murder and to protest against proposed amendments to the country's constitution, in Moscow

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Wednesday that opposition politician Alexei Navalny was free to return to Russia like any other citizen after being discharged from a hospital in Germany, which says he was poisoned with a nerve agent.

The 44-year-old Kremlin critic collapsed during a flight in Siberia last month. He was airlifted from Russia to Berlin where the German government said tests in Germany, France and Sweden had determined he was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent.

Speaking to reporters on a conference call, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Kremlin was pleased to see that Navalny was making a recovery and had been discharged from hospital.

(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Tom Balmforth/Andrew Osborn)