Fugitive
US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has met human rights groups and
lawyers at a Moscow airport, in his first appearance in three weeks
.
.
In a statement,
Mr Snowden said he was seeking asylum in Russia because he was unable
to travel to Latin America, where Venezuela had granted him asylum.
He had dropped an earlier Russian application after Moscow said he could stay only if he stopped the US leaks.
The Kremlin reiterated its condition on Friday.
"Mr Snowden could hypothetically stay in Russia if he first,
completely stops the activities harming our American partners and
US-Russian relations and, second, if he asks for this himself,"
President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
"He exists" - the first words of lawyer Genri Reznik, when he
spoke to journalists after the meeting. And no-one laughed at the
phrase, because no-one had actually seen Edward Snowden in several
weeks. Mr Reznik joked that he even touched the former CIA contractor to
make sure he was alive.
Russian MP Vyacheslav Nikonov remarked that Mr Snowden was nervous and did not joke, but looked quite resolute and even handsome. "He looked as if he was not fed very well, but he's got a perfect haircut," said Mr Nikonov.
All human rights activists who participated in the meeting said they thought Mr Snowden had quite a good chance of being granted political asylum in Russia. Almost all stated their readiness to help him get asylum, or in court, if he asks for that.
Russian MP Vyacheslav Nikonov remarked that Mr Snowden was nervous and did not joke, but looked quite resolute and even handsome. "He looked as if he was not fed very well, but he's got a perfect haircut," said Mr Nikonov.
All human rights activists who participated in the meeting said they thought Mr Snowden had quite a good chance of being granted political asylum in Russia. Almost all stated their readiness to help him get asylum, or in court, if he asks for that.
US President Barack Obama is due to have a telephone conversation with Mr Putin later on Friday.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said the phone call had been scheduled for several days, Reuters reported.
Russian lawmaker Vyacheslav Nikonov, who attended the meeting
at Sheremetyevo airport, said Mr Snowden had not specified whether he
was seeking temporary or permanent asylum.
"He said that he needs asylum in Russia to freely move
around," Mr Nikonov said. "It suits him perfectly well staying in the
airport because everything is fine here. The only thing he wants is to
be given freedom of movement."
Mr Snowden is wanted by the US on charges of leaking secrets
about US surveillance schemes. The former CIA contractor has been stuck
in transit since arriving in Moscow from Hong Kong on 23 June.
He is unable to leave the transit zone without asylum
documents, a valid passport or a Russian visa, none of which he
reportedly has.
The American has sent requests for political asylum to at
least 21 countries, most of which have turned down his request. However,
Bolivia, Nicaragua and Venezuela have indicated they could take him in.
But some European countries are likely to close their airspace to any plane suspected of carrying the fugitive.
'Unlawful campaign'
On Friday, Mr Snowden said he formally accepted all offers of
support or asylum he had already received "and all others that may be
offered in the future".
But he added that the US and some European countries had "demonstrated a willingness to act outside the law".
"This unlawful threat makes it impossible for me to travel to
Latin America and enjoy the asylum granted there in accordance with our
shared rights," Mr Snowden said in a statement released on the Wikileaks
website.
He also asked the rights groups and lawyers present at the
airport meeting to assist him "in requesting guarantees of safe passage
from the relevant nations in securing my travel to Latin America, as
well as requesting asylum in Russia".
Snowden leaks timeline
- 5 June: First leak published in the Guardian saying the National Security Agency (NSA) is collecting the telephone records of millions of people in the US
- 6 June: Details of the US Prism internet surveillance programme published by the Guardian and Washington Post
- 9 June: Guardian identifies Edward Snowden as the source of the leaks, at his own request, and says he has been in Hong Kong since 20 May
- 14 June: US files criminal charges against Mr Snowden
- 23 June: Mr Snowden leaves Hong Kong for Moscow, Ecuador confirms he has applied for political asylum
- 2 July: Bolivian leader Evo Morales' plane is diverted to Vienna and apparently searched for Mr Snowden
- 6 July: Bolivia, Venezuela and Nicaragua say they would offer Mr Snowden asylum
Mr Snowden had invited around 10
activists, including Sergei Nikitin, the head of Amnesty International's
Russia office, prominent Moscow lawyer Genri Reznik and Russia's
presidential human rights ombudsman, Vladimir Lukin.
Mr Lukin was later quoted by Interfax news agency as saying
Mr Snowden should be given refugee status instead of political asylum in
Russia. "It would be better if the UN or Red Cross did it," he said.
Last month, Mr Snowden had already tried to apply for Russian
asylum but President Putin said at the time he would only be welcome if
he stopped "his work aimed at inflicting damage on our American
partners".
A large press scrum had gathered at the airport ahead of
Friday's meeting, which was closed to journalists. Ms Lokshina released a
photo showing Mr Snowden at the talks. The fugitive, who is reportedly
staying at the airport's Capsule Hotel, had not been seen in public in
nearly three weeks.
He had sent his meeting request via an email message, which
instructed those attending to bring a copy of the invitation and
identification papers because of tight security.
'Act of espionage'
Also on Friday, members of the Mercosur, the South American
trade bloc, were gathering in the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo to
discuss allegations of US spying over Latin American governments.
Brazilian President Dilma
Rousseff told reporters that "any act of espionage that violates human
rights deserves to be condemned by any country that calls itself
democratic".
Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Venezuela were also expected
to give a joint statement condemning European countries for closing
their airspace to Bolivian president Evo Morales on his way back from
Moscow last week.
His plane was forced to land in Austria after France,
Portugal, Italy and Spain barred it from flying through their airspace -
apparently because of suspicions that Mr Snowden was on board.
Mr Snowden's leaking of thousands of classified US
intelligence documents have led to revelations that the National
Security Agency is systematically seizing vast amounts of phone and web
data.
They have also indicated that both the UK and French
intelligence agencies allegedly run similarly vast data collection
operations, and the US has been eavesdropping on official EU
communications.