Katerina Ganzha15:49, 30.09.26

The Russian Federation denies the existence of any political prisoners.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Russia had not discussed sanctions relief with the United States in exchange for the release of political prisoners, according to Russian media.

“This topic was not and could not have been discussed in this context, since we categorically deny the existence of any political prisoners and believe that such a formulation of the question is completely inappropriate,” Peskov said.

He also noted: “As for the various exchanges (of convicts) that took place before this, our intelligence services continue to maintain regular contacts on this matter.”

In response to a clarifying question, the Kremlin spokesman also noted that, in principle, the issue of easing sanctions in exchange for the release of certain US prisoners is not being discussed.

What came before

The Atlantic previously reported that Donald Trump could lift some sanctions against Russia even before the end of the war in Ukraine . As noted, several months ago, John Cole, the US presidential envoy to Eastern Europe, approached him with a proposal to break the impasse in Washington’s relations with Moscow, offering to lift some sanctions against Russia in exchange for the release of Kremlin political prisoners.

This initiative is allegedly still in its early stages. However, as the article stated, such an approach would outrage not only Ukrainians but even Europeans and some Americans, as such a deal would allow Russia to channel more funds into terrorism against Ukraine.

Subsequently, a group of members of the US House of Representatives called on President Donald Trump not to ease restrictions against Russia, but rather to impose “hellish sanctions .” They emphasize that as long as Russia’s full-scale war and the threat to its European allies continue, the US must take all necessary measures to stop Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

(C)UNIAN 2026