The leader of the Crimean Tatar movement, the deputy of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Mustafa Dzhemilev, offered Turkey to exchange the Russians it detained for Crimean political prisoners. Four of the six natives of Chechnya arrested in Turkey are associated with Ramzan Kadyrov and are accused of espionage and plotting to assassinate Chechen oppositionists.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan reiterated that there would be no objections from his side if the Russian side agreed. “We will try to contact the Kadyrovites, and if their master Putin agrees, then we will release a certain number of political prisoners, including Crimean Tatars. It should be an exchange of all for all, because we do not have terrorists, but people who, to some extent, expressed their attitude towards the occupation of Crimea,” Dzhemilev said.

Recall that on October 9, 2021, the Turkish police detained six foreign citizens with Russian Federation passports. They are suspected of espionage and attempts to assassinate Chechen emigrants. The operation was carried out by special services in Istanbul and Antalya.