MOSCOW. Feb 15 (Interfax) – The Russian Foreign Ministry has dismissed reports by several media organizations on the possibility that Russia could extradite former CIA employee Edward Snowden to the United States as a ‘gift’ to new U.S. President Donald Trump as absurd. “The Russian side has already commented at various levels on the absurdity of such a claim,” Russian […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Matthew Bodner – July 14, 2016) After three years of relative silence, NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden spoke up: “[President Vladimir] Putin has signed a repressive new law that violates not only human rights, but common sense. Dark day for Russia.” For the man who fled to Russia after blowing the lid off the NSA’s unprecedented […]
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MOSCOW. June 2 (Interfax) – Former CIA analyst Edward Snowden will have to ask for extension of his temporary asylum if he decides to stay in Russia, Vladimir Volokh, the head of the Public Council of the Federal Migration Service, told Interfax on Monday. “He has to request an extension of his temporary stay. No additional documents are filed if […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – George Feifer, special to RBTH – February 10, 2014) George Feifer is the author of many acclaimed books, including “Moscow Farewell” and “The Girl from Petrovka.” Thank you, Edward Snowden, for telling us how badly reform is needed. It would have been impossible without the knowledge you gave us. If Edward Snowden ever […]
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(Interfax – January 22, 2014) The Russian special services have nothing to do with the flight of former CIA employee Edward Snowden, who has been granted temporary asylum in Russia, Snowden’s lawyer Anatoly Kucherena told Interfax on Wednesday. “All these conversations about the FSB [Russian Federal Security Service] involvement in some special operation related to Edward and his deeds are […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Anna Dolgov – January 20, 2014) The U.S. House of Representatives and Senate intelligence committees will investigate suspicions that intelligence leaker Edward Snowden might have already been in touch with Russian security services while working as a defense contractor on U.S. soil, the committees’ leaders said. Representative Mike Rogers, a Republican from Michigan and head […]
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(opendemocracy.net – Margot Light – January 5, 2014) Margot Light is Professor Emeritus of International Relations at the Department of International Relations of the London School of Economics and Political Science. 2013 produced several foreign policy successes for President Putin, increasing Russia’s prominence on the international stage. At home, the Volgograd suicide attacks brought the year to a sad and […]
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MOSCOW. Nov 7 (Interfax) – State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Alexei Pushkov believes that the scandal sparked by revelations that U.S. special services monitored European leaders’ phone conversations will soon fizzle out because the European leadership is dependent on Washington. “The administration of [U.S. President Barack] Obama does not seem to be particularly troubled by Europe’s anger over this […]
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MOSCOW, November 2 (RIA Novosti) Fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden will not be permitted to break the conditions of his asylum status in Russia by harming the US, a Russian newspaper quoted President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman as saying Saturday. The Kommersant daily quoted a source in the US White House as saying that Snowden’s activities in Moscow were […]
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(RIA Novosti – Moscow, October 30, 2013) The Russian president’s spokesman Dmitriy Peskov thinks that the existing government telecommunications in the country ensure the protection of the security of conversations between the first persons of the country. “We have government telecommunications which ensure the necessary level of confidentiality and security of conversations. And measures to ensure that security is at […]
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MINSK, October 25 (RIA Novosti) Leaks by former US security contractor Edward Snowden regarding US intelligence-gathering on Russia will have no impact on relations between Moscow and Washington, Russia’s foreign minister said Friday. Sergei Lavrov said issues regarding Snowden were not high on Russia’s international diplomatic agenda. Emerging allegations that US intelligence operative have spied on the phones of […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Dmitry Babich, special to RBTH – October 21, 2013) Dmitry Babich is a columnist for Voice of Russia radio. Is the former NSA analyst a modern-day dissident? There are many interesting similarities between Edward Snowden and the famous Russian dissident writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1918-2008). The most recent example of these is the interview […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, October 10, 2013) The father of US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden says he believes Russia, where he arrived on Thursday with the aim of meeting with his son, is the only country in which his fugitive son can feel safe. Lon Snowden told reporters on arrival at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport that he doubted his son would […]
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(RIA Novosti – BRATISLAVA, August 29, 2013) The chairman of Russia’s lower house of parliament has likened fugitive US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden to the hero of Miguel de Cervantes’ novel. “You know, I compare him [Snowden] to Cervantes’ hero, Don Quixote,” State Duma speaker Sergei Naryshkin said Wednesday in an interview with Slovak television during an official visit […]
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(Interfax – August 26, 2013) Former CIA employee Edward Snowden changed his plans of flying from Moscow to a Latin American country after he learned that Cuba had decided to deny landing to an Aeroflot plane carrying him, Kommersant reported on Monday. “Moscow definitely expected that Edward Snowden who arrived at [Moscow’s] Sheremetyevo airport on June 23 would fly to […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, August 22, 2013) US President Barack Obama’s official visit to Russia has been postponed, not cancelled, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Thursday. “The visit has been postponed, not cancelled,” Alexander Lukashevich said. “The invitation that Mr. Obama has is still in force, and we hope that he will use it at some point in […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, August 21, 2013) Five of Russia’s extradition requests sent to the United States in the past few years have been left unanswered, a deputy Russian prosecutor general has said in an interview. “Since 2008, the United States has refused 16 times to extradite people to us citing the absence of a relevant treaty,” Deputy Russian Prosecutor […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, August 17, 2013) Fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden was not interrogated by special services after his arrival to Russia, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange said on Friday. In an interview with Fairfax Media, the founder of the anti-secrecy organization has confirmed that WikiLeaks personnel have continuously accompanied Snowden since he left Hong Kong for Moscow on […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Michael Bohm, Opinion Page Editor – August 16, 2013) Two weeks have passed since former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden received temporary asylum from Russia, and he hasn’t uttered a word. Nor do we know where he is located. The only information we have is a cryptic statement on Aug. 1 from Snowden’s Russian […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, Aug 14, 2013) The father of former CIA employee Edward Snowden will arrive in Russia shortly. He will be traveling incognito at first, a source familiar with the situation told Interfax on Wednesday. “The visit of Snowden Sr. and the accompanying persons will be confidential for the apparent reason. The world will learn about their arrival post […]
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From: Wayne Merry <wmerry@earthlink.net> Subject: Obama as Non-Statesmen Date: Sun, 11 Aug 2013 I often criticized Bill Clinton and George W. Bush for their tendency to condescend to other countries in their public statements, and especially toward Russia, but Obama’s press conference really takes the cake. He has learned nothing since his foolish remarks at the start of his presidency […]
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[“Snowden’s father gets visa, to leave for Russia soon” – Reuters – August 11, 2013 – reuters.com/article/2013/08/11/us-usa-security-snowden-idUSBRE97A08Y20130811] Reuters reports that Russia has granted a visa to the father of Edward Snowden, former NSA Booz Allen IT support contract employee-turned-fugitive activist. Lon Snowden is said to be planning to travel to Russia soon. But apparently he has not spoken to the […]
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[“The Snowden Affair: Questions and Answers with Olga Oliker” – RAND Corporation – rand.org – August 7, 2013 – http://www.rand.org/blog/2013/08/the-snowden-affair-questions-and-answers-with-olga.html] RAND Corporation and its analyst Olga Oliker address U.S.-Russian Relations and Russia’s granting of asylum to Edward Snowden, former NSA administrative IT support contract employee: The decision by Russia to grant temporary asylum to National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden […]
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(Interfax – August 12, 2013) One of the servers of U.S. global system of monitoring Internet users is located in Moscow, Vedomosti daily reported on Monday quoting information shared by former CIA employee Edward Snowden with The Guardian. Vedomosti says this follows from a 2008 presentation of the U.S. National Security Agency published on the Guardian’s website on July 31. […]
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(Interfax – August 8, 2013) A number of political analysts interviewed by Interfax are of the view that U.S. President Barack Obama’s decision to cancel his one-on-one meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in September will not be followed by Washington’s skipping other forums hosted by Moscow, and the situation itself will be played down. “In this situation, the matter […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, August 2013) Former US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden is legally free to travel around Russia and occupy any non-state job in the country, a senior migration official said on Friday. Last week Russia granted Snowden – who is wanted by the United States on espionage and theft charges after leaking classified information about the US […]
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(Interfax – August 7, 2013) Russian political analysts believe that the cancelation of plans of U.S. President Barack Obama to have a one-on-one meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin stems from strong pressure on the U.S. president on the part of hawks in the Congress and Senate. “This indicates that Obama is failing to lead relations with Putin toward […]
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(The White House – Office of the Press Secretary – NBC Studios – Burbank, California – August 7, 2013) For Immediate Release Q Now, were you surprised that Russia granted Snowden asylum? THE PRESIDENT: I was disappointed because even though we don’t have an extradition treaty with them, traditionally we have tried to respect if there’s a law-breaker or an […]
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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Terry Atlas & Margaret Talev – August 8, 2013) President Barack Obama’s decision to snub Russian President Vladimir Putin sends their relationship to a new low. In effect, Obama is replacing his effort to “reset” relations between the two nations with Cold War-style realpolitik, after a series of Russian actions contrary to U.S. interests. Even before […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, August 5, 2013) Russia has not received any official notification that US President Barack Obama intends to cancel a planned bilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow next month, Putin’s spokesman said Monday. “We haven’t received any changes, or any notifications. We don’t, therefore, have any information,” Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesman, told Russian […]
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines/ Rossiyskaya Gazeta – rbth.ru – Fyodor Lukyanov, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Chairman of the Presidium of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy – August 5, 2013) Edward Snowden’s story started out as a spy thriller, went on to become a farce, and is about to turn into a drama laced with elements of human tragedy. The genre […]
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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Ilya Arkhipov & Olga Tanas – August 2, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin is showing his gamesmanship on a global stage by giving his voters what they want with the asylum granted to ex-U.S. contractor Edward Snowden, while leaving the White House flustered. The decision is backed by almost twice as many Russians as those against […]
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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Terry Atlas & Nicole Gaouette – Aug. 2, 2013) Russia’s decision to grant temporary asylum to fugitive National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden is a blow to President Barack Obama’s desire to “reset” U.S. relations with its Cold War enemy. The Russian action yesterday puts in doubt a summit planned for next month between Obama and […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Justin Lifflander – Aug. 2, 2013) Now that U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden is a genuine expat, armed with papers giving him refugee status for one year and free to roam Russia’s capital while he figures out his next move, here is a list of 10 do’s and don’ts that he should keep in mind. […]
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(Interfax – Aug. 2, 2013) While the United States could cancel several upcoming meetings in Russia to protest Moscow’s decision to grant asylum to Edward Snowden, one Russian expert does not expect the U.S. to take any further steps that could cause a serious chill in bilateral relations. Said Fyodor Lukyanov, head of the Foreign and Defense Policy Council, “Concerning […]
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( RIA Novosti – Simon Saradzhyan, researcher at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center – Aug. 1, 2013) So Snowden has left the building. The NSA leaker’s departure from Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport, for an undisclosed location in Russia, on Thursday is turning into a real blessing for the US-Russian relationship. It may sound perverse, but both Barack Obama, and, to a […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, Aug. 2, 2013) Edward Snowden, who is wanted by the United States for leaking classified information on US surveillance programs and who was granted temporary asylum Thursday by Russia, has decided where he is going to live and is in a safe place with friends, a Russian lawyer who helped him with his asylum bid said […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, Aug. 1, 2013) The news that US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has been granted temporary asylum in Russia received mixed response from human rights advocates Thursday. The head of Amnesty International’s Moscow office said the human rights organization welcomed Russia’s decision to grant temporary asylum to Snowden, who had been holed up in a Moscow […]
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(RIA Novosti – NOVO-OGARYOVO, Aug. 1, 2013) The controversy around fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, who has been granted temporary asylum in Russia, is not of great importance and cannot harm US-Russian relations, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday. “This issue is not important enough to affect political relations,” aide Yury Ushakov told reporters, adding […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, August 1, 2013) Over half of Russians on the whole approve of what fugitive US former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden did, an opinion survey by the Levada Center pollster has shown. Snowden, who is wanted by the United States for leaking classified data about the US National Security Agency’s surveillance programs, formally requested temporary asylum […]
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(Interfax – July 30, 2013) The verdict to be handed down on Tuesday to Bradley Manning, a soldier accused of the biggest leak of classified information in U.S. history, will show what could have happened to former CIA employee Edward Snowden if he had returned to the United States, Alexei Pushkov, chairman of the Russian State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee, […]
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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Tom Balmforth – July 26, 2013) Fugitive U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden has applied for temporary asylum in Russia and is expected to soon be given a document that would allow him to leave the transit zone of Sheremetyevo Airport — where he has spent the past month. RFE/RL takes a look at the procedure for […]
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(Voice of America – Jessica Golloher – MOSCOW, July 29, 2013) A Russian Federal Migration Service official said he believes it’s best that former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden remain in Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport because he is a wanted man and is safer there. The United States has promised Russia it will not seek the death penalty if […]
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(Interfax – July 25, 2013) Russia does not have legal grounds for extraditing former CIA employee Edward Snowden to the United States, Federal Migration Service Public Council head Vladimir Volokh stated. U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul wrote on Twitter earlier that the United States had asked Russia simply for Snowden’s return home but did not file an extradition request. […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, July 22, 2013) U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul has declined claims that the Embassy allegedly takes no interest in former CIA employee Edward Snowden. “We have communicated our concerns clearly and frequently to the Russian government,” he wrote on Twitter in reply to a statement by Russian Public Chamber member, lawyer Anatoly Kucherena who alleged insufficient […]
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(Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 10, Issue 132 – Pavel Felgenhauer – Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – July 18, 2013) Edward Snowden, the contractor who worked as a systems administrator at a US National Security Agency (NSA) facility in Hawaii, arrived in Moscow from Hong Kong on June 23, apparently planning to fly to Havana the next day, but has stayed […]
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Michael Bohm, Opinion Page Editor of The Moscow Times – July 19, 2013) When Edward Snowden, with the assistance of his curators in the Russian government, held his makeshift news conference last Friday in Sheremetyevo Airport’s transit zone, it was no surprise that pro-Kremlin opinion makers dominated the short, invitation-only list of attendees. Among them […]
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(Kremlin.ru – July 17, 2013) [excerpt re: Snowden] QUESTION: Mr President, I want to ask about [Edward] Snowden. What happened with [Bolivian President Evo] Morales showed that the White House will stop short of nothing in this case. Aren’t you worried that it might jeopardise the upcoming Russian-American summit? Also, it seems that the biggest question now is how you […]
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(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, July 17, 2013) It took fugitive former US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden more than three days to submit an official request for asylum in Russia, after he voiced his intention to do so at meeting with human rights activists last Friday in his Moscow airport refuge. According to Russian lawyer Anatoly Kucherena, who helped Snowden with […]
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(Interfax – MOSCOW. July 17, 2013) Former CIA employee Edward Snowden has no right to submit documents for Russian citizenship, Civil Assistance human rights committee head Svetlana Gannushkina told Interfax on Wednesday. Lawyer Anatoly Kucherena, who is helping Snowden, said on Wednesday that Snowden did not exclude applying for Russian citizenship. “As of today, Snowden has no right to submit […]
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