U.S. and Russia Swap Prisoners in Deal Arranged by Intelligence Agencies

Russia and the U.S. carried out a prisoner swap early Thursday in Abu Dhabi in a sign of continuing confidence building, as the two sides pursue a deal to end the war in Ukraine.

Russia released Ksenia Karelina, a U.S.-Russian dual national who was sentenced last year to 12 years in a penal colony after being found guilty in Russia of treason for donating less than $100 to a U.S.-based Ukrainian charity. In exchange, the U.S. freed Arthur Petrov, a dual German-Russian citizen, who was arrested in 2023 in Cyprus at the request of the U.S. for allegedly exporting sensitive microelectronics.