MOSCOW — Former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden officially applied for temporary asylum in Russia on Tuesday, his attorney and the WikiLeaks organization announced.
The application is for temporary refuge, not permanent political asylum, according to human rights activists familiar with his case.
“It is a compromise step as Russia doesn’t want to utterly spoil its relations with the United States as tense as they are,” said Olga Kostina, head of the rights organization Soprotivleniye. She was among a number of human rights advocates who met with Snowden on Friday at Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow, where he has been staying since his arrival from Hong Kong more than three weeks ago.
Wikileaks, which has been advising Snowden, posted this tweet announcing his move:
“Edward Snowden today has filed for a temporary protection visa with Russia’s ministry of immigration. (hashtag)snowen (hashtag)nsa (hashtag)prism”
A Russian attorney who has been representing Snowden said he was with him when he made the application.