Foreign ministers gather for meeting in Brussels

European Union foreign ministers on Monday debated the 27-nation bloc’s response to the arrest of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and a weekend police crackdown that saw thousands taken into custody during protests in support of the Kremlin critic.EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell expressed his worries over the situation as he arrived to chair the ministerial meeting in Brussels.

More than 3,500 people were reportedly taken into custody during the nationwide protests.German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas other ministers called for the immediate release of the protesters.

Navalny was arrested earlier this month when he returned to Moscow after spending months in Germany recovering from an attack in Russia with what experts have said was the nerve agent Novichok.In October, the EU imposed sanctions on six Russian officials and a state research institute over Navalny’s poisoning, but there is little appetite to take new measures immediately.Borrell, the EU’s top diplomat, is also planning a trip to Moscow and it’s unclear what impact events will have on that visit.