Overview
- Russia’s FSB said researcher Laurent Vinatier was exchanged for Russian basketball player Daniil Kasatkin, who had been held in France on a U.S. extradition request.
- Vinatier had been convicted in Russia for failing to register as a “foreign agent” and was also under an espionage probe before receiving a pardon from President Vladimir Putin.
- President Emmanuel Macron said Vinatier is free and back in France, and a diplomatic source confirmed his arrival in Paris.
- Kasatkin was sought by U.S. authorities over alleged ransomware activity, accusations he and his lawyer deny, and the U.S. extradition request was not executed.
- The swap followed public signals from Moscow in December that an offer had been made to Paris regarding Vinatier’s case, according to Kremlin statements.