Allegations that Edward Snowden was coerced by the FSB and represented by a Putin‑linked lawyer

132 am still working for the NSA right now. They are the only ones who don’t realize it.” While he might have sincerely persuaded himself that he was somehow helping US communications intelligence in a self-appointed role, those familiar with the activities of the Russian security services find it inconceivable that he could escape their control in Russia. At the very minimum, a former US intelligence worker who stole American state secrets, such as Snowden, would be under the FSB’s scrutiny. Andrei Soldatov, the co-author of the 2010 book The New Nobility: the Restoration of Russia's Security State and the Enduring Legacy of the KGB, and who was personal knowledgeable about FSB procedures, explained the FSB would monitor “every facet of Snowden's communications, and his life.” General Oleg Kalugin, who, as previously mentioned, defected from the KGB to the United States in 1995, added that the FSB following the standard operating procedures of the KGB, would be “his hosts and they are taking care of him.” Kalugin further said in 2014 that “Whatever he had access to in his former days at NSA, I believe he shared all of it with the Russians, and they are very grateful” American intelligence officers knowledgeable about the operations of the FSB, agreed with Kalugin’s assessment. General Hayden, for example, who served both as director of the NSA, CIA, and Air Force counterintelligence, told me in an interview that he saw no other possibility than Snowden would be induced to cooperate in this situation, saying “I would lose all respect for the Russian and Chinese security services if they haven’t fully exploited everything Snowden had to give.” They certainly had that opportunity at Sheremetyevo International Airport: He had already, at least in the eyes of the Department of Justice, betrayed US secrets by stealing them and taking them abroad. Snowden was held in limbo in the transit zone. The FSB controlled his access to food, lodgings, the Internet, and whatever else he needed to survive there. It could also return him to the US if he did not cooperate. What recourse did Snowden have? The only party from whom he could seek redress was Putin’s regime. Russia’s leverage now would be even greater than in Hong Kong. If Putin chose to fully apply it, would be all but irresistible over a fugitive who had literally no place else to go. In a word, the FSB held all the cards but one—Snowden’s help with the stolen documents. Even if Snowden disliked the tactics of the Russian security services, his situation left him a powerful inducement now not to decline the requests of the Russian authorities. Two weeks after his arrival, the Russian authorities provided him with a convenient path to full cooperation with Russia. He was put in contact with Anatoly Grigorievich Kucherena, a silver-haired 53-year old lawyer, who was known as a personal friend of Putin. Kucherena also did task for Putin’s party in the Russian parliament or Duma. Most important for Snowden, Kucherena had excellent connections in the Russian security apparatus since he served on the oversight committee of the FSB. He also offered to serve as the lawyer for Snowden pro bono. On July 10, 2013, Snowden officially retained him as his legal representative in Moscow. From that point on, he would act as Snowden’s go-between with the FSB and other Russian agencies. At the outset, Kucherena made it clear to Snowden that he would have to play by Moscow’s tules before the Kremlin would grant him permission to stay in Russia. To begin with, Snowden had to withdraw any and application he had made elsewhere for asylum. He had to put his fate HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_020284