Russia will always strive to help its citizens held abroad, President Vladimir Putin said in Vladivostok on Thursday, following a major prisoner swap with Western countries last month.
Putin was speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum in the Russian Far Eastern city, responding to a question about whether Russians held in the US could be sent back to Russia.
“We treat all Russian citizens the same, when they need the help of the state. And we will continue to do so in the future,” he said.
After months of closed-door talks, 26 people were exchanged on August 1.
Russia and its ally Belarus released 16 prisoners, eight of them political prisoners. Among those released was Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
Germany released Vadim Krasikov, who was serving a life sentence for the 2019 murder of a Georgian Chechen living in exile in Berlin. Other countries involved in the swap included Poland, Slovenia and Norway.
