High-Stakes Prisoner Swap: Turkey Mediates Between East and West

Turkish intelligence revealed on Thursday it is mediating a significant prisoner exchange involving Russia, Belarus, the United States, Germany, and Slovenia. The exchange is highly secretive, and both the Kremlin and the White House have refused to comment. Multiple political prisoners and dissidents are believed to be part of the swap.

Turkish intelligence announced on Thursday that it is coordinating an extensive prisoner exchange involving major nations, signaling a significant diplomatic maneuver. The exchange encompasses Russia, Belarus, the United States, Germany, and Slovenia, with both the Kremlin and the White House declining to comment on the matter.

Flight tracking site Flightradar24 revealed movements of special Russian government planes consistent with past prisoner exchanges. A Russian government plane was also seen in Ankara, Turkey, further hinting at the operation's scale. Key figures such as Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and Vladimir Kara-Murza, currently held in Russian prisons, along with several Russian dissidents, are believed to be involved.

A lawyer for Alexander Vinnik, a Russian detained in the United States, withheld his client's location, heightening speculation about the covert nature of the swap. The secrecy extends to other Russians like Maxim Marchenko and Vadim Konoshchenok, who have disappeared from U.S. prison records. The West views many of the prisoners involved as wrongfully detained political activists, whereas Moscow labels them dangerous extremists.

(With inputs from agencies.)