Prisoner exchange: Medvedev threatens freed Russian opposition figures

Former Kremlin chief Dmitry Medvedev has sent threats to the exchanged political prisoners from Russia. He called the government opponents traitors who “represent an existential threat to today’s Russia,” as he wrote on his Telegram blog. “They should not forget the transience of their existence in this world.” The current deputy head of the Russian Security Council advised them to always look around carefully.

In a major exchange deal between Russia and the West, eight political prisoners were released from Russian prisons and flown out on Thursday. These included Vladimir Kara-Murza, Ilya Yashin and Oleg Orlov. In return, Moscow received back secret service agent Vadim Krassikov, who had been convicted of murder in Germany.

In 2019, Krassikov shot dead a Georgian of Chechen origin in Berlin on alleged state orders. President Vladimir Putin welcomed him and several Russian spies released from Western custody upon their arrival in Moscow.

The better deal for Moscow?

Russia made the better deal in the exchange, Medvedev explained. After all, people who had worked for the fatherland had returned to Moscow. They were “patriots of their homeland”. Russia, on the other hand, handed over prisoners who hated their fatherland and wanted to destroy it, as well as spies and criminal foreigners.

During his time as president, Medvedev was seen as a liberal beacon of hope. In the current conflict situation with the West, he has made inflammatory statements. He told the Russian opposition that they should “burn in hell”.

In the exchange, the USA got back reporter Evan Gershkovich and ex-soldier Paul Whelan, both of whom had been convicted in Russia of alleged espionage. In total, 26 people were released in the largest prisoner exchange since the end of the Cold War. Moscow released 16 prisoners and received back 10 Russian citizens.