2024-08-02 13:44:35
In the biggest East-West prisoner swap since the end of the Cold War, eight people have been returned to Russia, including Vadim Krasikov, a hitman convicted by a German court of killing a former Chechen fighter in a Berlin park, and two men convicted of cybercrimes in the United States, Vladislav Kliushina and Roman Selezniova.
Among those also recovered by Moscow is Russia’s Dultsev family, including two of their children, who were convicted by a Slovenian court of posing as Argentines to spy on the EU and NATO member state. The pair are believed to be “illegals” – deep-cover agents trained to impersonate foreigners who have lived abroad for years under cover of their identities.
Western intelligence services claim that there was a close relationship between V. Krasikov and V. Putin in the past.
“Bild” writes about it. It is noted that V. Krasikov could have participated in the killing of Anatoly Sobchak. In addition, the killer may have “information harmful to the Kremlin.”
“The Russian dictator may have feared that V. Krasikov would reveal important information if he remained in a German prison – as revenge against the Russian regime, which is not doing everything to get him released, or to reach an agreement with the German authorities.” It is suspected that V. Krasikov could have played a certain role in V. Putin’s coming to power. In the 1990s, he is believed to have worked for Anatoly Sobchak and his deputy and to have taken action against their political opponents. However, in 2000 In February, a few weeks after V. Putin took office as president, A. Sobchak died suddenly,” the material said.
According to official data, the cause of A. Sobchak’s death was a heart attack. However, relatives speculated that A. Sobchak was murdered.
“Is V. Krasikov somehow related to the alleged murder of V. Putin’s political mentor?” And do the traces lead to V. Putin himself? This is exactly what Western intelligence suspects and claims that this is precisely why V. Putin fought so persistently for the release of V. Krasikov,” Bild explains.
It is noted that the Kremlin dictator attaches great importance to everything known about his past.
“If the suspicions of the special services about his involvement in the murder of A. Sobchak are true, it would cast doubt on V. Putin’s favorite character trait – loyalty, which he supposedly values so much,” the journalists conclude.
“Union” inf.
2024-08-02 13:44:35