Snowden to stop leaks if given asylum in Russia: spokesman

PanARMENIAN.Net - Fugitive U.S. former intelligence analyst Edward Snowden will “no doubt” stop leaking security information if he is given temporary asylum in Russia, President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman said Friday, July 26, according to RIA Novosti.

Putin “expressed a firm intention to not allow” further damage to American interests, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, when asked whether Snowden had pledged to stop the leaks when applying for asylum in Russia. “And I have no doubt this is how it will be, no matter how the situation develops,” he added.

Putin is “not participating” in discussions with the U.S. over Snowden, he added. “Judging by the president’s schedule, you can conclude that he is not taking time out from it to follow Snowden,” Peskov told journalists.

Snowden, who is wanted by the United States for leaking classified data about the U.S. National Security Agency’s surveillance programs, formally requested temporary asylum in Russia on July 16. He has been holed up in the transit zone of Sheremetyevo Airport since arriving there on a flight from Hong Kong on June 23.

Washington has repeatedly called on Moscow to reject Snowden’s request for asylum and send him back to the United States to stand trial on charges of espionage and theft.