Former U.S. security contractor Edward Snowden has been granted permanent residency in Russia, his lawyer said Thursday. Snowden, a former contractor with the U.S. National Security Agency, has been living in Russia since 2013 to escape prosecution in the United States after leaking classified documents detailing government surveillance programs. "Today, Snowden was handed a residency permit for an unlimited period of time," his Russian lawyer Anatoly Kucherena told Russia's state Tass news agency. Snowden was able to obtain permanent residency rights because of the changes in Russia's immigration laws made in 2019, the lawyer said. Kucherena added that Snowden is not considering applying for Russian citizenship at the moment.

Source: CBC News October 22, 2020 20:15 UTC