Putin open to handing cyber criminals over to US
Russian President Vladimir Putin opened the door to potentially extraditing cyber criminals to the US in an interview with state media on Sunday.
The revelation comes ahead of a summit between Putin and US President Joe Biden in Geneva on Wednesday. The two leaders will discuss ways to "restore predictability and stability to the US-Russia relationship."
In the interview, Putin said that handing over cyber criminals to the US would have to be part of a reciprocal agreement. "If we agree to extradite criminals, then of course Russia will do that, we will do that, but only if the other side, in this case the United States, agrees to the same and will extradite the criminals in question to the Russian Federation," he told Russian media. Historically, the US has relied on picking up Russian criminals when traveling outside Russia’s borders. A formal extradition treaty for cyber criminals would make it easier for US law enforcement to apprehend Russian operators and bring them to justice.
