On Thursday, good and brave people were released from Vladimir Putin’s captivity and were able to regain their rightfully deserved freedom.
In return, Vladimir Putin got his criminals from the West. Various crypto-rustlers, hackers, spies, and assassins were released from Western prisons.
Putin personally welcomed Vadim Krasikov, the FSB assassin released from Germany; it appears they might know each other personally.
Putin exchanged Western reporters along with sincere, pure, if not naive, Russian opposition activists and dreamers of "good Russia" for his anti-Western and anti-liberal guardsmen.
It was more than just a prisoner swap; it was a trade in values.
Vladimir Kara-Murza, an extraordinarily brave and honourable Russian opposition influencer and one of Vladimir Putin's most profound critics, was among those released from Russia's prison.
In 2016, at the Oslo Freedom Forum, Vladimir Kara-Murza, during his public appearance, said that the Russian people are ready for democracy. But, in the meantime, Russia has become much worse than it was then.
Naive faith in change
In addition to Boris Nemtsov who was killed earlier, in February 2015, Vladimir Putin’s regime also assassinated Russia’s most influential opposition figure, Alexei Navalny.
Following the 2014 Crimea annexation, which was already a principal topic in 2016, Russia has now seized a significant portion of Ukrainian territory and initiated a full-scale war against Ukraine. Since those days in 2016, Russia has abducted thousands of Ukrainian children and is currently trying to annihilate Ukrainian culture, language, and statehood.
In 2016, it became increasingly apparent that the Russian people were unable to take significant action independently against the regime. They were unable to achieve this because the regime bribes the Russian people with a false sense of national pride by orchestrating horrific acts of aggression and deviation on the global stage, which they enjoy watching and supporting.
In addition to the aforementioned, many individuals in Russia, including the late Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Kara-Murza, and the recently released Ilya Yashin, who previously participated in various election campaigns and opposition manifestations, organised the so-called peaceful protests in Russia and even participated in election charades held and controlled by the regime.
Many Russian opposition leaders held the naive belief that Russia could become a democratic and modern state on its own - Alexei Navalny
These three remarkable Russian opposition men appeared to be convinced that Vladimir Putin could go peacefully after the elections, respecting the will and desire of the Russian people.
Moreover, many Russian opposition leaders held the naive belief that Russia could become a democratic and modern state on its own, as Vladimir Kara-Murza stated at the 2016 Oslo Freedom Forum.
Expulsion as relief
The exchange of prisoners brought a sense of relief to most Russians, as those who aimed to transform the country into a democratic and orderly state had departed. The relief is twofold: people and ideologies that are welcome in Russia have returned to their homeland.
Russia is not a country of people like Vladimir Kara-Murza, but a country of people who love Vadim Krasikov.
In Russia, FSB assassins are national role models
The Russian people are proud of their intelligence services; they like clandestine agents working to undermine the West and FSB assassins a lot more than freedom fighters such as Alexei Navalny, Ilya Yashin, or Vladimir Kara-Murza.
That is why Vadim Krasikov is a Russian hero. In Russia, FSB assassins are national role models, just like previously released Russian spies Anna Chapman or Maria Butina.
Expecting another exchange
There is no doubt that Moscow's hierarchy will reward and comfortably accommodate all these newly released people who returned to Russia, making it attractive to send new spies, assassins, or FSB sex girls to the West.
Thanks to Hungary’s new liberalisation of visa requirements with Russia, it will not be that difficult for Russia to inject thousands of more spies into the West in the near future.
Unfortunately, the swap could not include theatre director Yevgenia Berkovich and playwright Svetlana Petriychuk, who are still in captivity in Russia
While Russia is still under the leadership of Vladimir Putin and his regime, the more Russian spies and agents are arrested in the West, the more good people in Russia will regain their freedom.
Unfortunately, the swap could not include many of them, such as theatre director Yevgenia Berkovich and playwright Svetlana Petriychuk, who are still in captivity in Russia.
They can only hope that a new exchange will allow them to leave Russia, where they are unwanted, and that in return, the country will welcome back the beloved state's assassins, robbers, criminals, and spies.
