The Kremlin has been calling for Bout’s release since he was first arrested in Thailand in 2008 at the request of the US. Zakharova: “Unbelievable!”
The (arms dealer) Victor Booth “returning home” declares the Russian side after his exchange with the American basketball player Brittney Greiner.
“Russian citizen Viktor Bout, who was serving a prison sentence in the US for arms trafficking, returned to Russia as a result of an agreement with the US to exchange him for American basketball player Brittney Greiner, who was found guilty in Russia of drug smuggling,” the Russian news agency announced. Ministry of Foreign Affairs to TASS on Thursday.
“As a result of the efforts made, we were able to agree with the American side to arrange the exchange of Victor Booth for Brittney Griner. The Russian citizen returned to his motherland,” the Foreign Ministry said.
The Kremlin has been calling for Bout’s release since he was first arrested in Thailand in 2008 at the request of the US.
Zakharova: “Unbelievable!”
The Russians’ joy for the release of the arms dealer was expressed via Telegram by the representative of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova.
“Unbelievable! We receive messages – people write from Russia and abroad, congratulating us and rejoicing over the release of Viktor Bout. They don’t know him personally, they’ve never seen him. But they worry as if for their loved one! Thank the country” he reported on Telegram.
Who is Victor Booth
Booth, now 55, was held for 12 years in a federal prison in Illinois, USA.
Dubbed the “merchant of death” by the British, he enlisted in the Soviet Armed Forces shortly before its collapse and managed to learn at least six languages, including Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Persian and Russian. He served as a translator and held the rank of lieutenant during his military service, according to his website. He is believed to have been discharged from the army around the time the USSR fell.
That’s when he started his air transport business, delivering people and goods on behalf of foreign governments. US officials claim he transported weapons to conflict zones around the world, including bloody “hotspots” such as Sierra Leone and Afghanistan.
Bout won acclaim among his clients for his ability to smuggle weapons into war-torn parts of Africa in violation of UN embargoes, according to the Economist. A former administration once described him as “the Donald Trump or Bill Gates” of arms smuggling, according to a 2002 Los Angeles Times profile of him.
He was arrested in 2008 in a Bangkok hotel in Thailand after a sting operation by US agents recorded him offering to sell missiles to people he believed to be left-wing Colombian guerrillas.
Authorities charged him with providing “material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization” and noted that he was suspected of arming the Taliban and al-Qaeda in a news release about his arrest. Bout has categorically denied arming either group, CNN reported.
After his arrest, he was extradited to the US despite strong protests from the Russian government. He was subsequently tried and sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2012 on charges of conspiring to kill American citizens, distributing anti-aircraft missiles and providing aid to terrorist organizations. Subsequently, an appeals court upheld his conviction.
Moscow he has always proclaimed his innocence, calling his case a “flagrant injustice”, and trying to secure his release.
Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.
With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
