French researcher freed in prisoner swap with Russian basketball player

French researcher Laurent Vinatier, serving a three-year sentence in Russia for violating the country’s foreign agent laws, has been released as part of a prisoner exchange, French and Russian officials confirmed on January 8.

President Emmanuel Macron posted on X: "Our compatriot Laurent Vinatier is free and back in France. I share the relief felt by his family and loved ones." He also expressed gratitude for the work of French diplomatic officials, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot welcomed Vinatier and his parents at the Quai d'Orsay in Paris, the ministry said.

Russia’s FSB security service stated Vinatier, 49, was swapped for Daniil Kasatkin, a Russian basketball player arrested at a Paris airport last June and wanted in the United States for alleged involvement in ransomware attacks. The FSB said Vinatier had been pardoned by President Vladimir Putin, who had promised last month to review the case after a French journalist raised it during his annual news conference.

Vinatier was arrested in June 2024 at a Moscow restaurant and convicted four months later for failing to register as a “foreign agent.” While imprisoned, he faced an additional espionage investigation. The FSB claimed he had collected sensitive political and military information on behalf of Swiss intelligence, but the case was dismissed due to his “active repentance.”

Kasatkin, who denied US hacking allegations, left France by plane and arrived in Moscow on January 8. His lawyer, Frederic Belot, who also represented Vinatier, said Kasatkin had no computer knowledge and had been using a second-hand device controlled by cybercriminals.

On December 25, Moscow had made a “proposal” to France regarding Vinatier, interpreted by some as a potential attempt to restart dialogue with Paris. 

By Sabina Mammadli