Berlin/Moscow
At a time of great tension, Russia and the West are exchanging prisoners, including, according to the Turkish secret service MIT, Americans, at least one German citizen, prominent opponents of the Kremlin and the so-called Tiergarten murderer who is being held in Germany. It had been clear for several days that the operation, which was carried out via the Turkish capital Ankara, was imminent – at the latest after Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko on Tuesday lifted the death sentence against German Rico K.
Key questions and answers about the deal:
How does such an exchange work in practice?
Because everyone distrusts each other, once an agreement has been reached on who is to be released, an acceptable place for all involved must be found to transfer the prisoners. Turkey is a NATO member and has had difficult periods with Russia, for example because Moscow and Ankara were on different sides in the conflict in Syria for years. However, there has been talk of rapprochement recently. Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin met the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan Early July for a discussion on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.
What interests does Germany pursue here?
On the one hand, there are humanitarian interests with regard to the prisoners, some of whom were held in inhumane conditions in Russia and Belarus. But there are also foreign and security policy interests to be taken into account. Because it is clear that the US, an important partner of Germany, wanted to make progress here.
Who is the so-called Tiergarten murderer?
A Russian who, according to the verdict, treacherously shot a Georgian of Chechen origin in Berlin’s Kleiner Tiergarten park on August 23, 2019, on the orders of Russian state authorities. During the trial before the Berlin Court of Appeal, he had his lawyers explain that his name was Wadim S., that he was 50 years old and a civil engineer. He denied any ties to the secret service.
But after about fourteen months of negotiations, the court was convinced: the suspect was Wadim K., born on August 10, 1965, who had traveled to Berlin disguised as a tourist the day before the crime. According to the judges, the “state authorities of the Russian Federation” made the decision to liquidate the Georgian by July 2019 at the latest. Wadim K. was ordered to do so and given a new identity.
Wadim K. followed the December 2021 verdict almost motionlessly. He waived his right to appeal. Because the man was considered to be at high risk, he was not held in a high-security wing of Berlin’s Tegel prison, but was transferred several times to other prisons in Germany.
What is the legal basis for such an agreement in Germany?
Whether Germany participates in such an exchange is primarily a political decision. This also applies to the question of which prisoners benefit from such an agreement. The ‘Tiergarten Murderer’ served almost five years of his life sentence. Section 456a of the Code of Criminal Procedure provides him with a legal basis to be able to leave Germany after all.
It states: “The enforcement authority may refrain from enforcing a custodial sentence, a substitute custodial sentence or a measure of correction and security if the convicted person is extradited to a foreign government for another criminal offence, is transferred to an international criminal court or if he or she falls outside the scope of this Federal Law and is deported, pushed back or rejected.”
There is some discretion here. The Federal Prosecutor General makes the decision. However, the Federal Ministry of Justice has the right to give him instructions.
Has there ever been an international prisoner exchange on this scale?
This dimension is considered exceptional in terms of the number of prisoners exchanged and the number of countries involved. Russian commentators also speak of the first major release of political prisoners by the Kremlin since the end of the Cold War. However, from a Western perspective, former oil executive Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who was released in early 2013 under German mediation after ten years of captivity, was also considered a political prisoner.
Despite their strained relations, the US and Russia have repeatedly exchanged prisoners in the past. In December 2022, during Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, American basketball player Brittney Griner, who had been convicted of a drug offense, was released. In return, Moscow received Russian arms dealer Viktor But, who was convicted in the US.
Does the timing have anything to do with the US election campaign?
The fact that the US presidential election is three months away is a major factor in the timing. Preparations for a prisoner swap, especially on this scale, are complex and lengthy. Months of secret talks preceded it. Putin probably had no interest in jeopardizing the progress made in the event that the Republican would act Donald Trump could come to power again.
Trump is said to be close to Putin, but the 78-year-old is wildly unpredictable and volatile, and so far it has sounded as if he would offer absolutely nothing in exchange for the release of imprisoned Americans.
The the government of the United States since the president took office Joe Biden The release of several Americans from Russia was negotiated in early 2021, despite extreme tensions over the war in Ukraine. The fact that two such high-profile imprisoned Americans are now being released shortly before Biden leaves office is a major success for him – and will become part of his political legacy. The positive news helps Biden’s deputy Kamala Harris, who is running against Trump in the November election, in her election campaign.
What does Kremlin boss Putin get from the exchange?
As a former intelligence chief, Putin wants to show above all that Russians who work abroad in Moscow’s interests, come into conflict with the law and end up in prison, will not be forgotten. “We will not abandon our people,” is a Russian saying.
The Kremlin boss has repeatedly defended the “Tiergarten killer.” In Russia, Vadim K. is considered a hero by many because he avenged the deaths of dozens of Russian security forces from the perspective of the power apparatus. Some Russians accused of murder and other serious crimes abroad have received awards and lucrative positions after returning home.
Russia has never admitted having one killer to have targeted the Georgian. However, Putin publicly called the murdered man a “bandit” and a “murderer.” The Foreign Ministry in Moscow criticized the verdict in Berlin as “absolutely unfair and not objective.” The murdered Georgian was described as one of “the former leaders of terrorist groups in the North Caucasus.”
What is the significance of exchange for international relations?
Despite the almost complete rupture in relations between the West and Russia as a result of the war of aggression against Ukraine, there have also been contacts in the past, such as the exchange of prisoners.
Opposition figure Dmitry Gudkov, who fled Russia, said the exchange was a first step toward negotiating peace in Ukraine. Both sides have had enough of the war. By the calmness of the negotiation process and their strictness, they showed each other that they were keeping their agreements. This is an important test of trust. For the American Democrats, this is an important success in the presidential campaign.
An announcement: This report is part of an automated service of the German Press Agency (dpa), which operates according to strict journalistic rules. It is not edited or checked by the online editorial staff of AZ. Feel free to send questions and comments feedback@az-muenchen.de