Who are the individuals that Russia sought in exchange with the United States?

2024-08-02 20:55:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

A family of Russian 'sleeper agents', spies who have been sent from Moscow to other countries to await decisions on whether to act for years or decades, flew to Russia on Thursday in the largest East-West prisoner exchange since from the Cold War. This family, which was arrested and sentenced in Slovenia, acted so secretly that even its children only found out they were Russian after they flew to Moscow, the Kremlin announced on Friday.

"They did not know that they were Russian and that they had any connection with our country," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"You probably saw that when the children got off the plane, Putin greeted them in Spanish. He said 'buenas noches'".

Giving new details about the exchange and release, Mr Peskov confirmed that Vadim Krasikov, the hitman released by Germany, was an employee of the Russian security service, the FSB. According to Mr Peskov, he had served in the 'Alpha' group, the FSB's special forces unit.

Vadim Krasikov was convicted by a German court of killing a former Chechen militant in a Berlin park in 2019. President Vladimir Putin hugged him after he got off the plane he was traveling on to Moscow on Thursday evening.

Dressed in a baseball cap and sports T-shirt, he was the first of the returnees to step off the plane and meet President Putin. This signaled his importance to Moscow, which prides itself on the behavior of intelligence operatives arrested abroad.

Among those released were the so-called sleeper agents or "illegals"; the Dultsev couple, a man and a woman convicted by a court in Slovenia. They claimed to be from Argentina and run an information technology company.

Dmitry Peskov said that while the couple was being held in prison, they were rarely allowed to see their children and feared they could lose their parental rights.

"The children asked their parents on Thursday who was waiting to meet them in Moscow. They didn't even know who Putin was. This is how 'outlaws' work. They make such sacrifices out of dedication to their work," Kremlin spokesman Peskov said.

He said Russian government agencies were working to free other Russians abroad. The exchange was negotiated by the FSB and the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), he said.

President Putin's decision to meet them at the airport was "a tribute to the people who serve their country and who, after very difficult trials and thanks to the hard work of many people, have been able to return to their homeland". he said.

The exchange involved 24 prisoners, including 16 who were released from Russia and traveled west and eight prisoners held in the West returned to Russia. Among those released by Moscow were American journalist Evan Gershkovich and Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza, who also holds British citizenship.

Although Moscow released more prisoners than it took, it was portrayed by the Russian authorities as a victory, and people on the streets of Moscow seemed to agree.

"I don't deal with politics at all, but no matter how you look at it: every exchange is wonderful, as our Russian comrades returned to their homeland," said Zulfia, interviewed in the city center.

Andrei Lugovoi, the former spy wanted by Britain for killing dissident Alexander Litvinenko by nuclear poisoning and now serving as head of an ultra-nationalist party in the Russian Duma, wrote in Telegram: "Our people are at home with their families theirs. For the return of each of them, it is not bad to hand over some funds to foreign agents".

Asked if the prisoner swap was a sign that Russia might be ready to reach a compromise deal on Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said they were different situations. He added that the work for a possible diplomatic solution to what Russia calls the "special military operation" in Ukraine is being done on "different principles"./ VOA