Russia, Western countries organize major prisoner swap in Ankara

Duvar English

Turkey’s National Intelligence Organisation (MİT) on Aug. 2 announced that Turkey coordinated a major prisoner swap operation involving the exchange of 26 people from the United States, Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Slovenia, Norway, Russia, and Belarus in the capital Ankara on Aug. 1.

State-run Anadolu Agency quoted security sources as saying that 26 people were transferred to Turkey by seven planes, two from the U.S., one each from Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway and Russia. 

Within the scope of the operation, 10 people, including two children, were transferred to Russia, 13 people to Germany and three people to the United States from Ankara’s Esenboğa Airport.

The authorities underscored that the operation was one of the largest prisoner exchanges between the U.S., Russia and Germany in recent years. The establishment of the dialogue channels of the operation was provided by MİT, according to Turkish sources.

With the organization of MİT, the parties were brought together in Turkey in July 2024. Negotiations were held on the exchange operation to be carried out between the imprisoned citizens of the U.S., Germany, Poland, Norway, Slovenia, Russia and Belarus.

MİT acted as a mediator from the beginning to the end of the last phase of the negotiations which has been known to started at least two years ago.

Due to the large number of prisoners to be exchanged, all of them were taken from the aircraft under the supervision of MİT personnel and transferred to safe areas.

After the completion of ratification procedures by the involved countries, health checks of the hostages, and the fulfillment of other requested needs, the prisoners were placed on planes of their destination countries with the approval and instructions of the MİT.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reporter Evan Gershkovich, U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, and Russian opposition politician Ilya Yashin imprisoned in Russia, German citizen mercenary Rico Krieger imprisoned in Belarus, and Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) officer Vadim Krasikov imprisoned in Germany were along those who were exchanged.

In a post on his social media account regarding the prisoner swap, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said, "Turkey will continue to be the centre of peaceful diplomacy in line with the vision of our President."

U.S. President Joe Biden shared a photograph of the prisoners on the aircraft on X and stated, “After enduring unimaginable suffering and uncertainty, the Americans detained in Russia are safe, free, and have begun their journeys back into the arms of their families”

He along with Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris later greed them at the airport after meeting with the families of the prisoners in the White House.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stated the operation was “the right decision, and if you had any doubts, you will lose them after talking to those who are now free.”

"Many of the prisoners feared for their health and even their lives," he added after greeting prisoners on their arrival to Germany.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also attended the official ceremony organized for the released prisoners in a Moscow airport.

The Kremlin, speaking on the day of the exchange, said it hoped those who had left Russia, whom it described as "enemies," would stay away, according to the state-run TASS news agency.

Former president Dmitry Medvedev said, "Let the traitors now feverishly pick up new names and actively disguise themselves under witness protection programmes."

The prisoner swap was the biggest one since the Cold War. The last major exchange between the U.S. and Russia, in 2010, involved 14 prisoners.

The two countries had a high-profile exchange in December 2022, swapping U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner - sentenced to nine years for vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage - for arms dealer Viktor Bout, who was serving a 25-year sentence.