The key facts
- Putin and Witkoff are discussing a prisoner exchange in Saint Petersburg — according to Mash
- Moscow seeks the release of Olshansky and Legkodymov, the US — of Zimmerman and Khachaturyan
- American Stephen Hubbard, convicted of mercenarism, will be handed over to the US
Talks in Saint Petersburg
Russian President Vladimir Putin and the American leader's special envoy Steven Witkoff will discuss a prisoner exchange at their talks in Saint Petersburg. This was reported by the Telegram channel Mash. Earlier, the Foreign Ministry spoke about dialogue between Russia and the US on the release of prisoners.
The parties' demands
According to the authors of the publication, Moscow wants to secure the release of Oleg Olshansky and Anatoly Legkodymov. Olshansky is charged in the US with money laundering and sanctions evasion and faces up to 40 years in prison; journalists note that he needs urgent intestinal surgery. Legkodymov is a co-owner and chief technical officer of the Hong Kong cryptocurrency exchange Bitzlato; he is suspected of transferring criminally obtained money; he is a father of many children, and the American authorities are seeking to extradite him to France. For its part, the US wants to exchange Chuck Zimmerman and Andre Khachaturyan, sentenced to five and eight years in prison respectively for arms smuggling. According to Mash, Khachaturyan is seriously ill, and Zimmerman also has health problems. Relatives of both have repeatedly asked Moscow and Washington to include them in exchange lists.
Hubbard's transfer
On October 21, Vladimir Putin said that American citizen Stephen Hubbard, convicted of mercenarism, would be handed over to the US. At the time of sentencing in 2024, the man was 72 years old. He has already been taken to St. Petersburg's Pulkovo airport for dispatch to the United States.
