Putin Grants Citizenship to US Government Whistleblower Snowden

Edward Snowden. (Photo by BBC)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Russian President Vladimir Putin has granted citizenship to former U.S. intelligence officer Edward Snowden, who leaked classified information from the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) nine years ago and sought asylum in Russia.

According to major foreign media on the 26th (local time), the Russian government announced that it has decided to accept him as a Russian citizen in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation. A list of 57 people who obtained citizenship along with Snowden was also released on the same day.

In 2013, Snowden exposed the indiscriminate personal data collection practices of the NSA, where he worked, and fled the United States. After hiding in Hong Kong, Snowden tried to travel to South America via Russia, but due to the U.S. authorities canceling his passport, he was stranded in the transit zone of Moscow International Airport for a month before being granted a one-year temporary residence permit by Russia in August of the same year.

When his temporary residence permit expired in August 2014, Snowden obtained a three-year temporary residence permit from Russian immigration authorities and was granted an additional three-year temporary residence permit in early 2017, living in Moscow since then.

In 2017, he married Lindsay Mills, a former acrobat, and in October 2020, he received permanent residency equivalent to a U.S. green card and subsequently applied for Russian citizenship.

He reportedly requested asylum in 27 countries including Germany and Poland, but all countries except Russia refused due to concerns about U.S. retaliation.

In the U.S., a petition campaign urging Snowden’s pardon is underway, but the U.S. government insists that he must return and face legal judgment for leaking state secrets.

If convicted in his home country, Snowden could face up to 20 years in prison.

This news came five days after President Putin announced a military mobilization order for the first time since World War II. Local media are paying attention to whether Snowden and others who recently obtained citizenship will be included in the conscription related to the Russian government’s mobilization of 300,000 troops.

Some reports, including from the British BBC, suggest that the number of conscripts could expand from 300,000 to as many as one million.

Regarding this, Snowden’s lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said in an interview with local media, "Snowden has never served in the Russian military, so he is not subject to military mobilization."

Meanwhile, current U.S. President Joe Biden was Vice President at the time of Snowden’s leaks. Ned Price, spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, stated, "We are not aware of any change in Snowden’s U.S. citizenship status."