Snowden To Return If He Gets A Fair Trial

By R. Siva Kumar - 04 Mar '15 19:35PM

Edward Snowden, the former US Intelligence Contractor, would like to come back home if he was given a fair trial, according to a Russian lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena.

He has teamed up with U.S. and German lawyers to work on the issue, according to rferl.Kucherena has links with the Kremlin, and spoke his mind at a Moscow news conference on March 3 while presenting a book he has written about Snowden.

"I won't keep it secret that he... wants to return back home. And we are doing everything possible now to solve this issue. There is a group of U.S. lawyers, there is also a group of German lawyers and I'm dealing with it on the Russian side," he said.

However, in Washington, U.S. officials agreed that they would welcome Snowden's return to the US provided he faced criminal charges against him, according to Reuters.

U.S. Justice Department spokesman Marc Raimondi told Reuters: "It remains our position that Mr. Snowden should return to the United States and face the charges filed against him. If he does, he will be accorded full due process and protections."

Snowden is not viewed as a whistleblower, but is charged with leaking classified information, even as there is no issue of his actions having harmed their national security in any way, Raimondi clarified.

In 2013, Snowden was stranded in an airport at Moscow, while he was flying from Hong Kong to Cuba, after he brought out many documents about the National Security Agency's surveillance programs. Moscow gave asylum to Snowden, who leaked out some details of the US government surveillance programs. Repeatedly, Russia has turned down the possibility of extraditing Snowden to the US, following the strain in the ties between the two countries.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied that the nation's security agencies had worked with Snowden, according to nypost.

Kucherena appreciated Snowden's being a "heroic and open person," who has "principles and convictions" and didn't hesitate to defy the US government.

Snowden has his share of appreciative supporters, who praise him for being a 'whistleblower', while many others condemn him as a 'traitor' who has played loose with US security.