The massive prisoner exchange, involving a total of 26 prisoners – ten Russian citizens, including two minors, and 16 prisoners from several Western countries, was completed on Thursday afternoon.
Turkey's intelligence service was crucial in the practical prisoner exchange. In addition to Russia and the USA, Norway, Poland, Germany, Slovenia, and Belarus were involved in the deal.
Secrecy
The news could only be reported late on Thursday afternoon, due to security arrangements and secrecy surrounding the prisoner exchange.
Two of those involved in the prisoner exchange are American journalist Evan Gershkovich and former marine Paul Whelan.
Gershkovich, who works for The Wall Street Journal, was arrested during a reporting trip in Yekaterinburg in the spring of 2023.
Russian authorities claimed, without evidence, that Gershkovich was collecting secret information on behalf of the USA, and he was recently sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Including Navalny
The USA has also tried to free Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the White House announced.
We worked on an agreement with our partners that would have included Alexei Navalny, but unfortunately, it fell through, says US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
The White House called the prisoner exchange "historic". President Biden said in a statement that the agreement was a "diplomatic achievement".
In response to a question at a brief press conference, Biden said he "doesn't need to talk to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin" after the exchange.
Whelan and Kara-Murza
The deal also includes former US marine Paul Whelan. He was arrested by Russia's FSB security service in Moscow in December 2018 when he was about to attend a friend's wedding.
Whelan was sentenced in June 2020 to prison and hard labor for 16 years for espionage.
Belarus released German citizen Rico Krieger, who was threatened with the death penalty after being suspected of photographing military installations.
Russia also released political prisoner Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was sentenced in 2023 to 25 years in prison for treason after condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Russia Welcomes
Russia welcomed the prisoner exchange, with former President Dmitry Medvedev welcoming the release of Russians "who worked for the fatherland".
This includes Vadim Krasikov, who was convicted in 2021 of murdering a Chechen in a park in Berlin on orders from Russian security services.
It was not an easy decision to release Krasikov, according to the German government. The decision was made based on the government's duty towards German citizens and to show solidarity with the USA, says spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit.
Norway released a Russian citizen who was arrested in 2022, suspected of espionage.
