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Russian rights commissioner hopes for Viktor Bout’s return to Russia

Relevant Russian and US authorities are in talks, Russian human rights commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova wrote in her Telegram channel

MOSCOW, July 29. /TASS/. Russian human rights commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova hopes that Russian-US talks about US-jailed Russian citizen Victor Bout would eventually lead to his return to Russia.

"As you know, relevant Russian and US authorities are in talks. I hope they [the negotiations] would eventually lead to Viktor’s return," the commissioner wrote in her Telegram channel on Friday.

The ombudsperson went on to say that Viktor Bout has spent more than 10 years in a US jail "due to an unjust verdict that was politically motivated." Moskalkova has sent numerous requests, asking the US side to free Bout and enable his return to Russia.

CNN reported earlier, citing sources, that US President Joe Biden had supported the initiative to exchange US nationals Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner for Russian businessman Viktor Bout. According to the broadcaster, the proposal was sent to Russia in June.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken "pressed" Russia to accept Washington’s prisoner swap proposal in a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, as Blinken himself said at a press conference following US-Japanese talks in Washington on Friday.