Edward Snowden, NSA Whistleblower, Granted Citizenship by Russia's Vladimir Putin

Edward Snowden, the former NSA contractor who spoke against U.S. surveillance programs, has been given citizenship by Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

The Washington Post reported that Putin signed a decree covering 72 foreigners, with Snowden being the most prominent among the names.

Snowden was an ex-National Security Agency contractor who released information regarding the U.S. surveillance programs, then fled the U.S. to avoid prosecution. He is still wanted in Washington on espionage charges.

Snowden considers himself a whistleblower and has received permanent residency in Russia in 2020.

His lawyers said at the time that he was applying to get a Russian passport without revoking his U.S citizenship.

Meanwhile, Snowden's wife, Lindsey Mills, is now applying for Russian citizenship, according to Snowden's lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena. The two reunited in Moscow in 2014 and got married in 2017. They are currently parents to two sons.

The NSA, Department of Justice, and Office of the Director of National Intelligence have yet to comment on Snowden gaining Russian citizenship.

Former principal deputy director of national intelligence, Sue Gordon, said she thinks it was a very "questionable decision" based on what the U.S. knows about "what Russia perpetrates."

Edward Snowden Receiving Russian Citizenship

Edward Snowden said on Monday that he and his wife have no desire to be separated from their sons after years of being away from their parents.

Snowden added in The Guardian report that after about 10 years of exile and two years of waiting, "a little stability" will make a difference for his family.

The news of a former NSA contractor gaining citizenship in Russia had made a noise on social media, alleging that the whistleblower will soon be included in the Russian army to fight in Ukraine.

Editor-in-chief of the state-owned broadcaster RT on Telegram channel, Margarita Simonyan, asked whether Snowden will be part of the Russian army mobilization campaign.

Snowden has earlier criticized Kremlin's human rights records. He has not, however, commented in public about the country's invasion of Ukraine.

Russia and Ukraine on Edward Snowden's Citizenship

U.S. Department spokesperson Ned Price noted that he was unaware of any chance of the former NSA contractor's status as a U.S. citizen.

Putin said in 2017 that Snowden was wrong to leak U.S. secrets. However, he claimed that Snowden was not a traitor, according to a Reuters report. Putin was a former Russian spy chief himself.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that they would question to Justice Department for any specifics when asked questions about prosecutors seeking Snowden's prosecution.

Snowden revealed the existence of the NSA's database, wherein a collection of millions of Americans' phone records were gathered. The program was later found by a federal appeals court to be unlawful and has since shut down.

NSA intelligence-gathering also had a separate program, wherein it included industry collaboration.

Executive director of Columbia University's Knight First Amendment, Jameel Jaffer, said in a tweet that Snowden did an "immense public service" when he exposed the surveillance programs that were later on found to be unconstitutional.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Putin grants Edward Snowden citizenship in Russia - from CBS Evening News