PUTIN: Snowden Is A 'Strange Guy' Who Is In For A Tough Life

[struggle4progress]

Anna Smolchenko
Agence France-Presse
Sep. 4, 2013, 8:39 AM

... You know, I sometimes thought about him, he is a strange guy," ex-KGB spy Putin said in an interview with state-run Channel One television.

"How is he going to build his life? In effect, he condemned himself to a rather difficult life. I do not have the faintest idea about what he will do next," Putin said ...

In the interview, Putin revealed for the first time that he had known about Snowden's request to receive asylum in Russia while he was still in Hong Kong and told him via his aides that he was welcome to arrive in Russia as long as he stopped his leaks.

"He was told about it," Putin said of Snowden, adding he did not agree to his conditions. "And he left, just left, and that's it," he said, referring to the Russian diplomatic mission in Hong Kong which he said Snowden had contacted ...

http://www.businessinsider.com/putin-snowden-is-a-strange-guy-who-is-in-for-a-tough-life-2013-9

[struggle4progress]

1. Putin says Snowden can feel safe in Russia

(Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska; editing by Ralph Boulton)

... Despite Russia's refusal to hand over Snowden, Putin voiced sympathy for the United States' desire to prosecute him.

"If it really were secret information and if such a person would inflict any damage on us, then, undoubtedly, I would seek to put him in front of the Russian law in all its severity," he said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/04/us-usa-security-snowden-russia-idUSBRE9830QD20130904

[NYC_SKP]

2. I would never feel safe in Russia, and even less safe were I Snowden. nt

[Thinkingabout]

3. It is a life I would not want to live, I still wonder why he has allowed himself to be someone's

patsy. He might have thought he was going to be a hero but I am sure sometime soon he will realize he is not a hero.