MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree granting Russian citizenship to former US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden.
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the decree on Monday.
Edward Snowden is among the 75 foreign nationals, who have been granted Russian citizenship as per decree signed by Putin.
“After years of separation from our parents, my wife and I have no desire to be separated from our sons. After two years of waiting and nearly ten years of exile, a little stability will make a difference for my family. I pray for privacy for them and for us all,” said Snowden after being granted Russian citizenship.
39-year-old Edward Snowden had leaked highly classified files of the National Security Agency (NSA) in 2013, when he was an employee and subcontractor with the organisation.
His illegal disclosures revealed numerous global surveillance programs, many run by the NSA and the Five Eyes Intelligence Alliance with the cooperation of telecommunication companies and European governments, and prompted a cultural discussion about national security and individual privacy.
In 2013, Snowden was hired by an NSA contractor after previous employment with Dell and the CIA.
Snowden says he gradually became disillusioned with the programs with which he was involved, and that he tried to raise his ethical concerns through internal channels but was ignored.
On May 20, 2013, Snowden flew to Hong Kong after leaving his job at an NSA facility in Hawaii, and in early June he revealed thousands of classified NSA documents to journalists Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, Barton Gellman, and Ewen MacAskill.
Snowden came to international attention after stories based on the material appeared in The Guardian, The Washington Post and other publications.
Snowden also made extensive allegations against the GCSB, blowing the whistle of their domestic surveillance of New Zealanders and acts of espionage under John Key’s government.