The lawyer for Edward Snowden, the former intelligence contractor who disclosed tens of thousands of pages of US national security secrets who then fled to Russia for the Kremlin’s protection, says Snowden has sworn allegiance to Russia, the Washington Post reports.
Russian President Vladimir Putin granted Snowden Russian citizenship in September. It is unclear if Snowden officially renounced his American citizenship, but Snowden was issued a Russian passport Friday; Snowden previously said he and his wife would remain US citizens, and that the Russian citizenship was a way to protect their children.
Although his lawyer claimed he swore allegiance to Russia, Snowden’s lawyer did not clarify if Snowden took the official oath, which states he would act “to protect the freedom and independence of the Russian Federation, to be loyal to Russia, to respect its culture, history and traditions,” and to promise to “perform the duties of a citizen of the Russian Federation for the good of the state and society.” It is possible that Congress could revoke his US citizenship, a process called “denaturalization.” One trigger for that would be if Snowden joined the Russian military or in any way attempts to assist the Kremlin.