SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Report: Progress, But Snowden Not Leaving Airport Just Yet
NSA whistleblower's lawyer brings strandesd US citizen fresh clothes, Dostoevksy, but no officials documents that would allow him to leave transit area
Jul 24, 2013
UPDATED: Edward Snowden, the NSA whistleblower and US citizen who has been stranded inside the international transit zone of the Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow for over a month, received some preliminary documents on Wednesday from his legal advisor, but does not yet have the proper paperwork from the Russian government that would allow him to leave the terminal, despite earlier reports indicating otherwise.
Snowden's Russian lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, said the Russian immigration service is still reviewing the US citizen's asylum request, meaning this he would remain in the airport for the time being. He would not speculate on the exact length of time.
Kucherena, who specializes in human rights, talked to RT.com following his meeting with Snowden to explain the current situation and his meeting with the now famous US whistleblower:
Following reports early in the day that Snowden might be receiving documents permitting him to travel outside the airport caused a media stir, with reporters gathering at the terminal exit in anticipation of an appearance:
-- Lindsay France (@LindsayFrance) July 24, 2013
Citing an unnamed "airport official," the Reuters news agency reported that a lawyer "will hand him the papers" Wednesday afternoon and that these documents would allow Snowden "to leave the transit area."
As the Guardian reports, Snowden has said "he will request asylum in Russia until he is permitted to travel to Latin America. Venezuela has offered him political asylum but he remains unable to travel there without travel documents."
And as NPR's Corey Flintoff reported early in the day from Moscow, "if Snowden is allowed to leave the transit area, it could escalate tensions with the United States. That would free Snowden to visit the embassies of other countries that have offered him asylum. Some analysts have speculated that President Obama might cancel a planned visit to Moscow in September to show U.S. displeasure with such a move by Russia."
______________________________________________
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
UPDATED: Edward Snowden, the NSA whistleblower and US citizen who has been stranded inside the international transit zone of the Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow for over a month, received some preliminary documents on Wednesday from his legal advisor, but does not yet have the proper paperwork from the Russian government that would allow him to leave the terminal, despite earlier reports indicating otherwise.
Snowden's Russian lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, said the Russian immigration service is still reviewing the US citizen's asylum request, meaning this he would remain in the airport for the time being. He would not speculate on the exact length of time.
Kucherena, who specializes in human rights, talked to RT.com following his meeting with Snowden to explain the current situation and his meeting with the now famous US whistleblower:
Following reports early in the day that Snowden might be receiving documents permitting him to travel outside the airport caused a media stir, with reporters gathering at the terminal exit in anticipation of an appearance:
-- Lindsay France (@LindsayFrance) July 24, 2013
Citing an unnamed "airport official," the Reuters news agency reported that a lawyer "will hand him the papers" Wednesday afternoon and that these documents would allow Snowden "to leave the transit area."
As the Guardian reports, Snowden has said "he will request asylum in Russia until he is permitted to travel to Latin America. Venezuela has offered him political asylum but he remains unable to travel there without travel documents."
And as NPR's Corey Flintoff reported early in the day from Moscow, "if Snowden is allowed to leave the transit area, it could escalate tensions with the United States. That would free Snowden to visit the embassies of other countries that have offered him asylum. Some analysts have speculated that President Obama might cancel a planned visit to Moscow in September to show U.S. displeasure with such a move by Russia."
______________________________________________
UPDATED: Edward Snowden, the NSA whistleblower and US citizen who has been stranded inside the international transit zone of the Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow for over a month, received some preliminary documents on Wednesday from his legal advisor, but does not yet have the proper paperwork from the Russian government that would allow him to leave the terminal, despite earlier reports indicating otherwise.
Snowden's Russian lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, said the Russian immigration service is still reviewing the US citizen's asylum request, meaning this he would remain in the airport for the time being. He would not speculate on the exact length of time.
Kucherena, who specializes in human rights, talked to RT.com following his meeting with Snowden to explain the current situation and his meeting with the now famous US whistleblower:
Following reports early in the day that Snowden might be receiving documents permitting him to travel outside the airport caused a media stir, with reporters gathering at the terminal exit in anticipation of an appearance:
-- Lindsay France (@LindsayFrance) July 24, 2013
Citing an unnamed "airport official," the Reuters news agency reported that a lawyer "will hand him the papers" Wednesday afternoon and that these documents would allow Snowden "to leave the transit area."
As the Guardian reports, Snowden has said "he will request asylum in Russia until he is permitted to travel to Latin America. Venezuela has offered him political asylum but he remains unable to travel there without travel documents."
And as NPR's Corey Flintoff reported early in the day from Moscow, "if Snowden is allowed to leave the transit area, it could escalate tensions with the United States. That would free Snowden to visit the embassies of other countries that have offered him asylum. Some analysts have speculated that President Obama might cancel a planned visit to Moscow in September to show U.S. displeasure with such a move by Russia."
______________________________________________
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.