Bild: US, Germany, Russia discussed swapping Navalny for convicted Russian hitman

German, U.S. and Russian authorities had discussed exchanging Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny for Vadim Krasikov, a convicted Russian hitman sentenced to life imprisonment in Germany, before Navalny's death, the German newspaper Bild reported on Feb. 18, citing its sources.

Navalny, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin's main opponent, died on Feb. 16 in a penal colony in the town of Kharp, Yamal Nenets Autonomous District. He had been convicted in several fabricated criminal cases as part of the Kremlin's crackdown on dissent.

Leaders around the world have blamed Putin for his death. Opinions differ on whether Navalny's death was caused by the harsh prison conditions or intentional murder.

Meanwhile, since 2021 Krasikov has been serving a life sentence for the murder of an exiled Chechen-Georgian dissident, Zelimkhan Khangoshvili, in Berlin in 2019. Investigative reports suggested that Krasikov is an agent of Russian intelligence agencies.

“Vladimir Putin wanted the Russian agent Vadim Krasikov, who is imprisoned in Germany. It was discussed that in exchange, Putin would release Navalny,” Bild said in a Telegram post.

Read also: Alexei Navalny’s life and death as main opponent to Putin regime

The Wall Street Journal first broke the news of a possible exchange in September 2023. Citing unnamed Western officials, the newspaper reported that Russia is pursuing the exchange of Krasikov, naming Navalny as one of those who could be swapped during a potential prisoner swap.

Putin said in a Feb. 8 interview with U.S. political commentator Tucker Carlson that the U.S. could ask their allies to exchange Krasikov for Wall Street journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.

The Kremlin has effectively held Gershkovich as a hostage in an effort to extort concessions from the U.S.

Gershkovich was arrested in Yekaterinburg in March 2023 while working on a story about the Wagner mercenary group recruiting locals, as well as Russian citizens' views on the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russia accused him of espionage, which both the U.S. government and the Wall Street Journal vehemently deny. Espionage in Russia carries a maximum prison term of up to 20 years.

Read also: Navalny’s death preceded by long list of Putin critics’ murders

We’ve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.