German Justice Minister Marco Buschmann has issued an urgent warning against travel to Russia following a major prisoner swap between Russia, Belarus and several Western countries last week.
“No one has been safe in Russia for a long time,” Buschmann told the newspaper Stern.
“And I strongly advise against traveling to a country where no one is safe unless it is absolutely necessary,” Buschmann said.
“I cannot remove anyone’s concern that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin will create more political prisoners.”
Sixteen people were freed in Thursday’s prisoner exchange in Moscow, including American journalist Evan Gershkovich and former Marine Paul Whelan.
In return, Moscow received a number of convicted criminals, including secret service agent and hitman Vadim Krasikov, who was imprisoned in Germany for murder.
Buschmann said he had doubts that the Russian side would keep to the agreement. He said they could not be sure even when the plane with the liberated prisoners landed in Cologne/Bonn.
According to Buschmann, Russia’s domestic intelligence service FSB regularly uses poison “to directly or indirectly harm people’s lives or health” in a malicious manner.
After the plane landed in Germany, the released prisoners underwent a medical examination. “That was my biggest concern – that Russia had poisoned them before the flight. But from what we know so far, thank God that was not the case.”
