Aug 01 (Jowhar.com) – The largest exchange of prisoners between Russia and the West since the Cold War took place today, with 24 people exchanged.
The White House said 16 prisoners have been released and are returning to Europe and the United States. Among them is Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
Instead, eight Russians were released from prisons in the United States, Norway, Germany, Poland and Slovenia, including individuals accused of espionage.
The exchange took place at Ankara airport in Turkey this morning. The deal lasted more than 18 months and included Vadim Krasikov, who had been serving a life sentence in a German prison since 2019.
Rico Krieger, a German citizen who was sentenced to death in Belarus and later pardoned by the country’s leader Alexander Lukashenko, and Ilya Yashin, a Russian citizen who was imprisoned for political reasons, are among the people released.
The last high-profile prisoner exchange took place in December 2022, when American basketball star Brittney Griner was exchanged for prominent Russian businessman Viktor Bout, who had been in an American prison for 12 years.
Tensions between Moscow and the West have been high in recent years, especially after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
