MOSCOW, April 20. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has bestowed Russian citizenship on 90-year-old Odessa native and writer and journalist Garri Karolinsky (Tabachnik) as well as his spouse, who both reside in the US.

"[I hereby decree] to bestow Russian citizenship on the following individuals: <…> Garri D. Karolinsky born on July 3, 1932 in Ukraine; Zinaida V. Karolinsky born on September 19, 1939 in Russia," Putin’s decree published on Thursday said.

Garri Tabachnik (known under the pen name Garri Karolinsky) was born in Odessa in 1932, worked at the All-Union Mayak radio station, emigrated to the US in 1973 where he worked, among other places, for Radio Liberty and the Voice of America (recognized as foreign agents in Russia). He has authored several books which have also been published in Russia. According to media outlets, Karolinsky resides in New York and in recent years, at the invitation of the Russian side, has participated in the Congress of Compatriots in Moscow and in compatriot forums held in Crimea.