MOSCOW, October 7 (RIA Novosti) – The father of fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden is expected to come to Russia along with other relatives in the near future, Snowden’s attorney said Monday.
“Visas have been granted,” lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said in comments aired by the Rossiya-24 television channel. He added that the father’s date of arrival had yet to be determined.
The father, Lon Snowden, received a Russian visa on August 1, and there has since been a continuous stream of reports about when he would visit.
The younger Snowden, a former US intelligence contractor, is wanted by the United States on espionage and theft charges after leaking classified information about the US National Security Agency’s sweeping telephone and electronic surveillance programs. He received temporary asylum in Russia in August, a move that has further strained US-Russian relations.
