MIT’s prisoner swap operation in Ankara has gone down in history. Within the scope of the prisoner swap coordinated by MIT between 7 countries, 26 people returned to their countries. There were emotional moments as US and Russian leaders Biden and Putin welcomed the prisoners at the airports. The identities of those returning to their countries were also a matter of curiosity. Among those exchanged in the operation, The Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovic and former US Marine Paul stand out.
THEY CAME TOGETHER IN TURKEY IN JULY
MİT ensured the establishment of dialogue channels for the historical swap operation. The parties were brought together in Turkey in July 2024 with the organization of MİT, which used intelligence diplomacy. Negotiations were held and details were discussed for the swap to be carried out between Western country citizens and Russian citizens who are in prison in the USA, Germany, Poland, Norway, Slovenia, Russia and Belarus. MİT carried out the mediation activity from the beginning to the end of the negotiations.
26 HOSTAGES FROM 7 COUNTRIES WERE EXCHANGED
Following negotiations, an exchange operation was launched. Within the scope of the operation, the hostages were brought to Ankara Esenboğa Airport with a total of 7 planes, 2 from the USA, 1 each from Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway and Russia. The exchange of hostages at the airport was carried out under the control of MIT. The hostages were taken from the planes under the supervision of MIT personnel and transferred to safe areas. After the approval procedures of the party countries were completed, the hostages’ health checks and other requested needs were met, the hostages were placed on the planes of the countries they were going to with the approval and instructions of MIT. The return of the planes of the party countries was also carried out with the approval of MIT. Of the hostages brought to Turkey, 2 were children, 10 hostages were transferred to Russia, 13 hostages were transferred to Germany and 3 hostages were transferred to the USA.
THERE ARE IMPORTANT NAMES AMONG THEM
Important names that all parties have wanted for a long time and that have made headlines in the local press were exchanged. Among the exchanged hostages were names that are frequently heard in the public eye, such as The Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovic and US Marine Paul Whelan, who are in prison in Russia; German citizen mercenary Rico Krieger, who is in prison in Belarus; Russian dissident Ilya Yashin and FSB officer Vadim Krasikov, who is in prison in Germany.
STATEMENT FROM MIT
The statement from MIT, which carried out every stage of the operation that went down in history as the most comprehensive hostage exchange between the US, Russia and Germany, said, “During a period of escalating tensions around the world, Turkey continues to contribute to ensuring peace and stability in the international arena under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Continuing their calls for keeping dialogue channels open for all kinds of problems between countries, Turkey and the MIT Presidency are taking steps to establish common platforms where all parties come together and to carry out mediation activities. MIT contributes to the resolution of conflicts in the international arena by using all intelligence tools, especially intelligence diplomacy.”
BIDEN WELCOMED HIM AT THE AIRPORT
US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris welcomed those returning to the US at the airport following an exchange operation conducted in Ankara under the management of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT).
PUTIN ALSO WELCOME HIM WITH FLOWERS AT THE AIRPORT
Russian President Vladimir Putin also welcomed Russian prisoners arriving from Ankara at Vnukovo airport in the capital Moscow. While Putin welcomed the Russian prisoners arriving by private plane with flowers, some prisoners could not hold back their tears during the welcome. While Putin shook hands with the prisoners, some prisoners hugged Vladimir Putin and thanked him for being able to return to their country.
Addressing the Russian prisoners, Vladimir Putin said, “First of all, I congratulate you all on your return to your homeland. I would especially like to address our soldiers who have ties to our army. I would like to thank your homeland for not forgetting you for your commitment to your oath. You are now home.”
WILL REWARD RUSSIAN PRISONERS
Putin also said that Russian prisoners who return to their country will be rewarded.
THE IDENTITY OF THOSE WHO RETURNED TO THEIR COUNTRIES WITH THE EXCHANGE OPERATION MANAGED BY MIT BECAME A SUBJECT OF CURIOUSNESS
Among those exchanged in the operation, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reporter Evan Gershkovich, former US Marine Paul Whelan, German citizen mercenary Rico Krieger, Russian dissident Ilya Yashin, and Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) officer Vadim Krasikov stand out.
EVAN GERSHKOVICH
Gershkovich was born in the United States in 1991 to a Jewish family that fled the country during the Soviet Union. Raised in a Russian-speaking environment since childhood, Gershkovich began his journalism career in 2016 as a news assistant at the New York Times.
Having worked for The Moscow Times and AFP in Moscow since 2017, Gershkovich began working as a reporter in the Moscow office of the US newspaper WSJ in 2022.
Gershkovich was detained on suspicion of espionage in the city of Yekaterinburg, about 1,600 kilometers east of Moscow, in March 2023. Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) announced that the US citizen journalist was arrested on charges of “espionage for the American government.”
Gershkovich was accused of working for the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to collect “classified information” from a Russian tank factory. Gershkovich, the WSJ and US officials have denied these allegations, while US President Joe Biden and some senior officials have called for the immediate release of the American journalist.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also reported that Gershkovich’s activities in Yekaterinburg “have nothing to do with journalism.”
After more than a year of trial, Gershkovich was found guilty of espionage in July and sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Gershkovich was the first American journalist to be convicted of espionage in Russia since the end of the Cold War. Gershkovich was accredited by the Russian Foreign Ministry.
PAUL WHELAN
Canadian-born former US Marine Paul Whelan, who also holds US, British and Irish citizenship, was detained in Moscow in December 2018 on espionage charges.
Whelan, who was sentenced to 16 years in prison by a Russian court in June 2020, denied the accusations of spying for Russia on behalf of US intelligence. US President Joe Biden announced that they were making intense efforts to enable Whelan to return to the US.
Whelan was the longest-serving prisoner among those released in the swap deal.
Russia has alleged that the former US Marine was collecting classified information in the country. Investigators said Whelan was in possession of a hard drive containing classified information when he was detained at the Metropol Hotel in Moscow.
Whelan had testified that he was in Russia for a friend’s wedding and that the device had been given to him by a Russian friend, and that he thought the disc contained holiday photographs.
ILYA YASHIN
Ilya Yashin, known for his opposition political activities in Russia, took part in many demonstrations in the country and was sentenced to short prison terms.
The Russian Justice Ministry added Yashin to its foreign agent list in 2022 on the grounds that he received payments from abroad. Detained the same year for making false claims about the Russian military online, Yashin was sentenced to 8.5 years in prison by the court.
Yashin was also known as an aide to Russian dissident Alexei Navalny, who died in prison in Russia for extremism.
RICO KRIEGER
Born in 1993, German citizen and mercenary fighter Rico Krieger admitted that he came to Belarus as a tourist last year and, under the direction of Ukrainian intelligence, carried out sabotage actions in Belarus and took photos of military facilities in the country.
Krieger was tried for terrorist activity, espionage activity, mercenary activity, forming and participating in an extremist group, carrying and storing explosives, and intentionally damaging communication lines, and was sentenced to death on June 24.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko issued a pardon decision for Krieger yesterday.
A US State Department spokesperson told the BBC that Krieger worked for Pond Security, a firm that provided security services to US facilities in Germany, between 2015 and 2016. The German Red Cross also noted that Krieger had previously worked for “a regional association” of the organisation.
It is stated that Krieger sent an application to join foreign mercenary groups in Ukraine.
Following the death penalty decision, Krieger was seen in a video broadcast on Belarusian state television, begging for mercy from Belarusian leader Lukashenko and accusing the German government of inaction.
VADIM KRASIKOV
Vadim Krasikov, who was accused of killing Georgian citizen Zelimkhan Hangoshvili in Germany, was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Krasikov, an alleged employee of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), had been in prison since December 2021.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Hangoshvili, who was once in the Chechen Republic, was a “separatist.”
(AA-İHA-DHA)