Washington: In the historic multi-country exchange held in Turkey, twenty-four prisoners were freed on Thursday, marking one of the largest swaps between Russia and the West in recent years. Here’s a look at the prisoners involved:
Evan Gershkovich– Profile: Evan Gershkovich, an American journalist for The Wall Street Journal, became the first Western correspondent to be arrested for espionage in Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.- Background: Detained in March 2023 during a reporting trip in Ekaterinburg, Russian authorities accused him of collecting information for the CIA, though no evidence was publicly disclosed. Both Gershkovich and the US government denied the charges.- Sentence: He was sentenced to 16 years in prison in July 2023 in a closed, expedited trial.
Paul Whelan– Profile: Paul Whelan, a former US Marine, holds citizenship in the US, UK, Ireland, and Canada.- Background: Arrested in December 2018 on espionage charges, Whelan has maintained his innocence, claiming the evidence against him was fabricated. He reported poor prison conditions, including having to stitch overalls and hats in moldy, unheated barracks.
Video: Biden, Kamala Harris Welcome Americans Freed in Russian-West Prisoner Swap
Alsu Kurmasheva– Profile: Alsu Kurmasheva, a 47-year-old editor for Radio Liberty based in Prague, holds dual US-Russian citizenship.- Background: She was arrested in Kazan, Russia, in 2023 during a family visit. Authorities charged her with failing to register as a “foreign agent” and spreading “false information” about the military under laws enacted following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Ilya Yashin– Profile: Ilya Yashin is one of Russia’s prominent opposition leaders, allied with Boris Nemtsov and Alexei Navalny.- Background: Yashin chose to remain in Russia post-Ukraine invasion to voice his anti-war stance. He has been an outspoken critic of the Kremlin, contributing significantly to the opposition movement.
Oleg Orlov– Profile: Oleg Orlov, a 70-year-old veteran of the Soviet-era dissident movement, is a renowned human rights defender.- Background: Orlov led Memorial, an organization awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in 2022. He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison for criticizing the Russian army.
Sasha Skochilenko– Profile: Sasha Skochilenko, a 33-year-old anti-war artist.- Background: She was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2023 for replacing price tags in a St. Petersburg supermarket with anti-war messages. Amnesty International has declared her a prisoner of conscience.
Vladimir Kara-Murza– Profile: Vladimir Kara-Murza, a 42-year-old opposition politician and activist, holds dual Russian-UK citizenship.- Background: Kara-Murza has accused the Kremlin of attempting to poison him twice. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2023 for criticizing the Ukraine war and his association with an “undesirable” organization. His health deteriorated in prison due to past poisonings.
Kevin Lik– Profile: Kevin Lik, a 19-year-old dual German-Russian national.- Background: Lik is the youngest person convicted of treason in Russia, sentenced to four years in prison in December 2023. He was charged with sending photos to a foreign state during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Rico Krieger– Profile: Rico Krieger, held in Belarus, is a 30-year-old German national.- Background: He was sentenced to death for allegedly carrying out a terrorist attack on orders from Ukrainian intelligence. Belarusian authorities claimed he set off a non-injurious explosion. He was pardoned by President Alexander Lukashenko in 2024 after a public plea for clemency.
Ksenia Fadeyeva– Profile: Ksenia Fadeyeva, an associate of Alexei Navalny in Tomsk.- Background: She was with Navalny during his poisoning in 2020 and later elected to the municipal council. In 2021, Navalny’s organization was banned, and in 2023, Fadeyeva was sentenced to nine years in prison for organizing an extremist group.
Liliya Chanysheva– Profile: Liliya Chanysheva, a regional coordinator for Navalny’s office in Ufa.- Background: She was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison for organizing an extremist community. In April 2024, her sentence was extended by two years.
Vadim Ostanin– Profile: Vadim Ostanin, a former coordinator of Navalny’s office in Barnaul.- Background: In July 2023, he was sentenced to nine years in a penal colony on charges of extremism.
Andrei Pivovarov– Profile: Andrei Pivovarov, a Russian opposition politician and head of Open Russia.- Background: Open Russia was outlawed in 2021, and Pivovarov was convicted in 2022 of conducting activities of an “undesirable” organization. He was sentenced to four years in prison.
Dieter (Demuri) Voronin– Profile: Dieter (Demuri) Voronin, a dual Russian-German national and political scientist.- Background: Voronin was sentenced to 13 years and three months in prison in March 2023 on state treason charges related to the Ivan Safronov case.
Patrick Schöbel– Profile: Patrick Schöbel, a German national.- Background: Arrested at Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg in February 2024, Schöbel was accused of drug smuggling after being found with cannabis gummies. He had been detained pending trial.
German Moyzhes– Profile: German Moyzhes, a dual Russian-German national and lawyer.- Background: Moyzhes was arrested in St. Petersburg in May 2024, accused of state treason for assisting Russians in obtaining EU residence permits. His trial was ongoing.
The deal was the latest in a series of prisoner exchange negotiated between Moscow and the Washington in the past two years but the first to require significant concessions from other countries, with seven nations agreeing to give up 24 prisoners.
Gershkovich to Fadeyeva: Who Are The Prisoners Exchanged between Russia and the West? world-news World News | Latest International Global World News | Todays Breaking News Headlines
