(LONDON) — U.S.-Russian dual citizen Ksenia Karelina was released from Russian prison in an overnight prisoner exchange, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Thursday.
The exchange took place overnight in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Karelina’s lawyer Mikhail Mushailov confirmed to ABC News that she had been released.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed the exchange in a tweet, writing, “American Ksenia Karelina is on a plane back home to the United States. She was wrongfully detained by Russia for over a year and President Trump secured her release.”
A U.S. official told ABC News that American and Russian intelligence agencies took the lead in negotiating the prisoner swap.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe said in a statement, “Today, President Trump brought home another wrongfully detained American from Russia. I’m proud of the CIA officers who worked tirelessly to support this effort and we appreciate the government of UAE for enabling the exchange.”
A CIA spokesperson told ABC News that “much of the swap was negotiated by the U.S. government, with CIA playing a key role engaging with Russian intelligence.”
“Through these engagements, CIA negotiated with Russia and worked closely with domestic and foreign partners, including the UAE, to carry out the exchange,” the spokesperson said. “We also collaborated closely with counterparts at agencies across the [U.S. government] to facilitate this exchange.”
Russia’s Federal Security Service also confirmed Karelina’s release, saying she had been pardoned via a decree from President Vladimir Putin. The FSB said the exchange was made at Abu Dhabi airport with the mediation of the UAE.
German-Russian citizen Artur Petrov — who was detained in Cyprus in 2023 at the request of the U.S. and later extradited — was exchanged for Karelina, the service said.
A Justice Department notice of his arrest said Petrov was accused of involvement in a scheme to procure U.S.-sourced microelectronics subject to export controls on behalf of a Russia-based supplier. The components were intended for manufacturers supplying weaponry and other equipment to the Russian military, the notice said.
A 2024 statement related to Petrov’s extradition to the U.S. said he was part of a network that secretly supplied Russia’s military industrial complex with “critical U.S. technology, including the same types of microelectronics recovered from Russian weapons on Ukrainian battlefields.”
Karelina — a ballet dancer — was serving a 12-year prison sentence in a penal colony, having been convicted of treason in August 2024. She was accused of organizing fundraisers for Ukraine’s military, attending pro-Ukraine rallies and posting social media messages against Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Her boyfriend, Chris Van Heerden, spoke to ABC News Live hours after her sentencing, saying she did nothing wrong. He said all she did was donate $50 to a Ukrainian charity.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti, Cindy Smith, Tanya Stukalova and Shannon K. Kingston contributed to this report.
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