Exchange of prisoners Russia – US: a former ballerina against a chip trafficker

Moscow has released a citizen with double citizenship, Russian and American, in an exchange for a Russian-German citizen incarcerated in the United States.

A lawyer of Ksenia Karelina, who was found guilty last year by betrayal by a Russian court because she donated money to a charitable organization in the United States that offers humanitarian support, told Reuters that she was on her way to the United States.

Karelina, formerly Dbalerina, obtained the US citizenship after she married an American and moved to Los Angeles. She was arrested when she returned to Russia to visit her family last year, according to Euronews.

The director of the CIA, John Ratcliffe, and a high official of the Russian secret services held discussions for this exchange in Abu Dhabi, according to a CIA official quoted by Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

“Today, President Trump has brought home another American unfairly in Russia,” Ratcliffe told WSJ. “I am proud of the CIA officers who have worked tirelessly to support this effort and we appreciate the Government of the UAE because it allowed the exchange,” he added.

“Today, the United States welcomes the return of the American-Russian ballerina Ksenia Karelina. President Trump and his administration continue to work non-stop to ensure that the Americans detained abroad are returning home to their families,” said National Security Councilor Mike Waltz.

Karelina left for the US with a plane from Abu Dhabi on Thursday morning, said her Russian lawyer, Mihail Mushailov.

It was changed with Arthur Petrov, with double citizenship (German and Russian), who was arrested in 2023 in Cyprus, at the request of the US, because he would have exported special chips.

The US Department of Justice said last year that Petrov participated in a American manufacture microelectronic procurement scheme for manufacturers providing weapons and other Russian army equipment.