Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) of the Russian Federation, Sergei Naryshkin, said that the dialogue with the United States on prisoner exchange continues to progress, but according to the agreement, progress on this issue cannot be interpreted clearly. TASS.
Naryshkin responded to the question about Moscow’s rejection of the US’s new offer to replace Americans Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich: “Such a dialogue is ongoing, but in agreement with the American side, we do not comment on this issue.”
According to the head of the Foreign Intelligence Service, he regrets that the American side, represented by the State Department, has not fulfilled this agreement.
Before that, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov statedHe said Moscow had not publicly discussed Washington’s proposals for the exchange of American prisoners Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich.
December 5 TASS, citing the head of the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Matthew Miller reportedIt has been stated that in recent weeks, the USA has sent an important offer to Russia to exchange American Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich, who were convicted of espionage in the Russian Federation. He emphasized that this proposal was rejected by the Russian side.
Paul Whelan was detained in Moscow in December 2018. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges and sent to Mordovia’s maximum security penal colony No. 17 to serve his sentence. Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich was arrested in Russia at the end of March this year. He has been detained since then and faces up to 20 years in prison.
Formerly in the State Duma statedIt was stated that Putin will not be able to enter Armenia due to the ratification of the ICC’s Rome Statute.