Three US citizens to be released

The US government has confirmed that 24 individuals participated in a significant prisoner exchange involving Russia and several Western nations, including the United States and Germany.

Included among those released are US citizens Evan Gershkovich, a journalist, and former US Marine Paul Whelan.

In exchange, Russian security service operative Vadim Krasikov was released by Germany.

Speculation regarding a major prisoner swap intensified after several prisoners were relocated from Russian jails to undisclosed locations.

Evan Gershkovich was sentenced to 16 years in a high-security penal colony after being convicted on espionage charges earlier this month. He was arrested while covering a story in the city of Yekaterinburg.

Prosecutors accused Gershkovich of espionage, claims that he and the US government vehemently deny. This was the first conviction of a US journalist for espionage in Russia since the Cold War.

Following his arrest, Gershkovich was held in Lefortovo prison in Moscow.

Paul Whelan, 54, is currently serving a 16-year sentence after being arrested in Moscow in 2018 on suspicion of espionage. He is a citizen of the US, Canada, the UK, and Ireland.

Whelan was detained by Russia’s state security agency, accused of being involved in espionage activities, which his family has always denied.

On the same day Evan Gershkovich was convicted, Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva received a sentence of six-and-a-half years in a medium-security prison after a closed trial.

Kurmasheva, an editor previously with a government-funded media outlet, was found guilty of spreading false information regarding the Russian military.

She was arrested while visiting her mother in Russia in June 2023.

Vladimir Kara-Murza, a noted Russian dissident and critic of the Putin regime, was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2023 for spreading disinformation about the Russian military.

Kara-Murza, who has also been openly critical of the war in Ukraine, denied all charges against him.

Opposition figure Ilya Yashin was imprisoned in 2022 for disseminating false information about the Russian military after condemning alleged war crimes.

He has expressed concerns for his safety following the death of a fellow opposition leader in prison.

Oleg Orlov, a human rights activist, was sentenced to two and a half years for calling Russia a fascist state and opposing the war in Ukraine.

Orlov previously chaired a renowned human rights organization and faced a retrial which changed his initial penalty.

Lilia Chanysheva received a nine-and-a-half year sentence for extremism after previously being associated with the late opposition leader’s anti-corruption network.

Most of her peers have fled Russia amid the intensified crackdown on dissent.

Ksenia Fadeyeva, linked to the anti-corruption foundation, was sentenced to nine years after being accused of organizing an extremist group.

Sasha Skochilenko was sentenced to seven years in a penal colony for replacing supermarket labels with anti-war messages, criticizing the current regime.

Kevin Lik, the youngest individual convicted of treason, faced four years in prison for allegedly sharing sensitive military information.

Rico Krieger was sentenced to death in Belarus for alleged involvement in planting explosives but has since received a pardon.

Andrei Pivovarov was detained for leading the Open Russia movement, accused of managing an “undesirable organization.”

Dieter Voronin was sentenced to 13 years on treason charges, linked to receiving classified information from another journalist.

Additional German nationals released in the exchange included various individuals detained for lesser charges.

Vadim Krasikov was serving a life sentence in Germany for the assassination of a Chechen commander before being exchanged. During his trial, evidence suggested he acted on behalf of Russian state orders.

Roman Seleznev is known for orchestrating a large hacking scheme, leading to significant financial damages, and receiving a lengthy prison sentence.

Vadim Konoshchenok was charged with conspiracy related to procurement and money laundering tied to the Russian government in 2022.

Arrested in Slovenia, Artem and Anna Dultsev were sentenced to 19 months each for espionage accusations.

Accused of espionage in Norway while posing as a Brazilian academic, Mikhail Mikushin misrepresented his identity and age to authorities.

More information regarding those released in the exchange is expected to emerge as the situation develops.