- Scholz on the exchange of prisoners: A difficult decision
After the prisoner exchange between Russia, Belarus, and several Western countries, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz emphasized that the German government had not taken the decision to deport the so-called Tiergarten murderer lightly. "This difficult decision was made jointly by the affected ministries and the coalition after careful consultation and consideration," the SPD politician said in the evening at Cologne Bonn Airport.
He spoke of a duty to protect German citizens and highlighted solidarity with the USA. Scholz said: "No one took this decision lightly, to deport a murderer convicted to life imprisonment after only a few years in prison."
The "Tiergarten murderer" had killed a Georgian of Chechen origin in a park in Berlin in 2019, who had sought refuge in Germany. Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly defended the murderer, as he saw him as having eliminated a state enemy. The Berlin Higher Regional Court found in 2021 that Vadim K. acted on behalf of the Russian state.
Scholz: Opposition leader informed early on
Given the importance of the matter, Scholz said he had also informed the opposition leader early on, without naming Union faction leader Friedrich Merz (CDU) by name. Merz had explicitly assured him that he agreed with the decisions of the Federal Government.
After the exchange, which took place in Ankara, Scholz reported that he had spoken to US President Joe Biden on the phone. Biden said he was "very grateful for the cooperation between our two countries in this important matter," the Chancellor said at the airport, where some of the prisoners released in Russia and Belarus were expected to arrive late in the evening.
The Federal Government has been working for several months in close cooperation with the USA and European partners to find a solution for political prisoners wrongfully imprisoned in Russia, the Chancellor said. Among the human rights and anti-war activists were also key figures of the network of the Russian oppositionist Alexei Navalny, who died in custody in February. Several Germans and German-Russian citizens, "who were charged and sentenced to long prison terms on flimsy grounds, such as the charge of high treason," were also among the released.
Scholz said he was looking forward to welcoming several of the released, who would be brought from Ankara to Germany. Some of the US citizens had already flown directly to the USA.
The Federal Government had been working in close cooperation with the USA and European partners to secure the release of political prisoners falsely imprisoned in Russia. Scholz noted during his conversation with US President Joe Biden that Biden was "grateful for the cooperation between our two countries" in this matter.
