by Charlotte Hazard at Just the News
Karelina is originally from Russia and got her U.S. citizenship after marrying an American. When she went to Russia to visit family last year, she was arrested.
Russia on Thursday released a U.S.-Russian dual national in exchange for a Russian man jailed on smuggling charges in the U.S.
The dual national, Ksenia Karelinais is “on a plane back home to the United States,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote on the social media platform X. “She was wrongfully detained by Russia for over a year and President Trump secured her release. @POTUS will continue to work for the release of ALL Americans.”
She was arrested in Russian in February 2024 and convicted of treason on charges stemming from a donation of about $52 to a charity aiding Ukraine, according to the Associated Press.
The Federal Security Service in Russia accused her of “proactively” getting money for a Ukrainian organization that gives gear to forces in Kyiv.
In exchange for Karelina, the U.S. freed Arthur Petrov, a dual Russian-German citizen who was arrested at the request of the U.S. for allegedly exporting sensitive microelectronics to Russia.
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