Who are the prisoners who could feature in a future East-West swap?
World
Who are the prisoners who could feature in a future East-West swap?
(Reuters) - Following the biggest East-West prisoner swap since the Cold War, there are still some Westerners held in Russia or Belarus, as well as Russian and Belarusian dissidents viewed by the West as political prisoners. For its part, Moscow could still seek the release of Russians jailed abroad.
Here are some facts about people who could feature in future swaps:
FOREIGN NATIONALS HELD IN RUSSIA OR BELARUS:
GORDON BLACK
An active duty U.S. staff sergeant based in South Korea, Black was detained on May 2 in Vladivostok in Russia's Far East on suspicion of stealing 10,000 roubles ($113) from his Russian girlfriend. He was also subsequently charged with threatening to kill her by grabbing her by the neck during a quarrel.
The Pentagon said Black had broken army rules by travelling to Russia without authorisation, having passed through China.
ROBERT GILMAN
A former U.S. marine, Gilman was sentenced to 4-1/2 years in prison in October 2022 for attacking a police officer onboard a train while he was drunk.
Gilman, who his lawyers said had come to Russia to study, told the court he did not remember the incident but had "apologised to Russia" and to the officer.
KSENIA KARELINA
A dual U.S.-Russian national, Karelina was detained on treason charges in February while visiting family in Yekaterinburg and faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
This family of Russian sleeper agents were flown to Moscow in the biggest East-West prisoner swap since the Cold War.
The FSB security service has accused the Los Angeles resident of collecting funds for a Ukrainian organisation whose ultimate beneficiary was Ukraine's army. Her family said she donated about $50 to a New York-based non-profit that donates non-military aid to Ukraine.
LAURENT VINATIER
A French expert on the former Soviet Union with long experience of working in Russia, Laurent Vinatier was arrested by FSB officers in a Moscow restaurant in June.
In July, Russia said he had pled guilty to illegally collecting sensitive Russian military information that could be used by hostile intelligence services.
ANDRZEJ POCZOBUT
A Belarusian journalist of Polish origin, Poczobut was in 2023 sentenced to eight years in prison in Belarus on charges of inciting ethnic hostility and undermining Belarusian security.
RUSSIAN OR BELARUSIAN DISSIDENTS:
BORIS KAGARLITSKY:
A left-wing academic and Soviet-era dissident, Kagarlitsky was in 2023 charged with "justifying terrorism", related to his opposition to the war in Ukraine. In February, the 65-year-old was sentenced to five years in prison.
IVAN SAFRONOV:
A former reporter for Russian newspapers, Safronov was arrested in 2020 and charged with treason, receiving a 22-year sentence in 2022.
Prosecutors said that Safronov, who was working at Russia's space agency at the time of his arrest, had disclosed state military secrets. Now held in a Siberian penal colony, he denies the charges.
BELARUSIAN OPPOSITION LEADERS:
Russian ally Belarus played a major role in Thursday's swap, releasing German national Rico Krieger. Minsk continues to imprison several leaders of a 2020 anti-government protest movement, including Maria Kolesnikava, Syarhey Tsikhanouski, Maxim Znak and Viktar Babaryka.
