Putin signs pardons for exchanged prisoners

Russian President Vladimir Putin has formally pardoned the 16 individuals sent to the West via Turkey on Thursday as part of a major prisoner exchange.

Eight Russian nationals and two minors were handed over by the US and its allies, in exchange for Americans, Germans and Russian nationals convicted of a variety of crimes in Russia.

“Paul Whelan, Kevin Leak, Evan Gershkovich, Demuri Voronin, Vladimir Kara-Murza, Alsa Kurmasheva, Lilia Chanysheva, Vadim Ostanin, Ksenia Fadeyeva, Aleksandra Skochilenko, Ilya Yashin, Andrey Pivovarov and Oleg Orlov have been granted pardons by presidential decree,” the Kremlin said in a statement.

The decision was made with the goal of securing the release of Russian citizens imprisoned in foreign countries, the presidential administration added.

According to the Federal Security Service (FSB), the exchanged individuals had “acted in the interests of foreign states to the detriment of the security of the Russian Federation.”

Earlier on Thursday, the White House announced the release of US citizens Whelan, Gershkovich, and Kurmasheva, as well as Kara-Murza, who is a green-card holder. US President Joe Biden described the seven Russian nationals sent to the West in the exchange as “political prisoners.”