President Putin Gives Russian Citizenship To Edward Snowden, US Foreign Ministry: Should Go Home To Face A Court

US State Department spokesman Ned Price. (Wikimedia Commons/US Department of State)

JAKARTA - President Vladimir Putin on Monday granted former US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden Russian citizenship, nine years after he exposed the scale of covert surveillance operations by the National Security Agency (NSA).

Snowden's name appears without Kremlin comment in President Putin's decree granting citizenship to 72 foreign-born people.

Snowden, 39, fled the United States and was granted asylum in Russia after leaking classified files in 2013, revealing domestic and international surveillance operations carried out by the NSA, where he works.

Snowden later issued a message, saying he wanted his family to stay together and asking for privacy.

"After years of being separated from our parents, my wife and I have no desire to be separated from our children," the tweet read.

"After two years of waiting and almost ten years of exile, a little stability would make a difference for my family. I pray for their privacy and for all of us."

Separately, US authorities have for years wanted him to return to the United States, to face a criminal trial on espionage charges.

Illustration of Edward Snowden. (Wikimedia Commons/Gage Skidmore)

State Department spokesman Ned Price said he was not aware of any change to Snowden's status as a US citizen.

"I was aware of the fact that he had in some ways denounced his American citizenship. I had no idea that he had let go," Price told a news conference.

Snowden himself currently faces charges in the United States, which could result in decades in prison.

"Our position has not changed. Snowden must return to the United States where he must face justice like any other American citizen," said Price, as quoted by the AP.

Snowden was charged in 2013 with unlawful disclosure of US national security and intelligence information, as well as theft of government property. The three charges each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years.

The Justice Department also sued to stop Snowden from collecting profits from his memoir, saying he had violated confidentiality agreements with intelligence agencies.

Meanwhile, Snowden's lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti, Snowden's wife, Lindsay Mills, an American who has been living with him in Russia, would also apply for a Russian passport. This couple has two children.

Russia granted Snowden permanent residency in 2020, paving the way for him to gain Russian citizenship.

That year, a US appeals court found the program Snowden exposed was unlawful, while US intelligence leaders who publicly defended him did not tell the truth.

President Putin said in 2017, Snowden was wrong to leak US secrets, but was not a traitor.