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Trump criticizes Russia-US prisoner swap as 'win for Putin'

by Elsa Court and The Kyiv Independent news desk August 2, 2024 7:11 PM 2 min read

U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris greet journalist Evan Gershkovich upon their arrival at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, US, on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

This audio is created with AI assistance

The historic Aug. 1 prisoner swap was a "win for Putin," Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump claimed during an interview with Fox Business on Aug. 2.

The prisoner exchange saw Russia and several Western countries swap a total of 24 detainees, the largest such move in almost 15 years.

Trump alleged that the deal was "very complex" so it is unclear "how bad the deal is for us."

Responding to a question on his reaction to Russia freeing Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and others, Trump said that "as usual, it was a win for Putin."

"But we got somebody back, so I'm never going to be challenging that," Trump told Fox Business.

Gershkovich was arrested in Yekaterinburg in March 2023 and charged with spying. The White House denied the charges as "ridiculous."

"It wouldn't have happened with us (in power). We would have gotten him back" without having "to pay anything," Trump claimed.

"We wouldn't have had to let some of the great killers of the world go, because that's what's happened, as you know," he added.

Trump was referring to convicted murderer Vadim Krasikov, who was freed from German prison as part of the exchange.

A German court sentenced Krasikov to life imprisonment in 2021 for the murder of Zelimkhan "Tornike" Khangoshvili in 2019.

A Georgian citizen of Chechen descent, Khangoshvili fought against Russian forces in Chechnya in the early 2000s and claimed asylum in Germany in 2016.

The German court said that Krasikov had acted under orders from the Kremlin and had been issued a fake passport to travel to Berlin to kill Khangoshvili.

The Kremlin denied the claims at the time but confirmed on Aug. 2 that Krasikov was a Federal Security Service (FSB) agent.

Authors: Elsa Court, The Kyiv Independent news desk

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