MOSCOW, November 22. /TASS/. Moscow is keeping an eye on the situation with Russian citizen Maria Butina, who was arrested in the United States on forged charges more than four months ago, and will continue taking all the necessary steps for her immediate release, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters on Thursday.

"Diplomats of the Russian Embassy in the US regularly visit Butina," Zakharova said. "Now she is devoting much time to study the criminal case files and is preparing for the December 19 court hearing. For our part, we will further take all the necessary steps for Butina’s immediate release from prison."

"Our fellow citizen has fallen victim of Russophobia, which unfortunately has gained unprecedented momentum in Washington," Zakharova stressed. "The charges pressed against her show that she is a political prisoner."

Butina case

The 29-year-old Maria Butina was arrested in Washington D.C. on July 15, on the eve of the Helsinki summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump. The Russian gun rights activist was charged with conspiracy for conducting activities in the interests of a foreign state. The investigators claim she engaged in these activities without registering as a foreign agent at the US Department of Justice.

The FBI said Butina entered the US in August 2016 on a student visa and took up studies at the American University. She received the master’s degree in international relations in May 2018, according to her lawyer.

Butina is a member of the board of the Russian public associations ‘The Right to Guns’. In this capacity, she attended the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington in February 2017 where President Donald Trump took part.

On July 21, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov underlined in his telephone conversation with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that US actions against Russian citizen Maria Butina were inadmissible.