Edward Snowden 'Could Leave Transit Zone Soon'

Edward Snowden could leave the transit zone of a Moscow airport after Russian authorities review his request for asylum, his lawyer has said.

Anatoly Kucherena told the Interfax news agency he believes Moscow could decide within a week whether to grant the 30-year-old fugitive asylum.

"The question of giving him temporary asylum won't take more than a week," he said.

"I think that in the near future he will have the possibility to leave the Sheremetyevo transit zone."

Snowden has applied for temporary asylum in Russia three weeks after arriving at a Moscow airport from Hong Kong on June 23.

The United States wants him sent home to face prosecution for espionage after he leaked details of the Prism surveillance programme.

Snowden claims he has acted in the public interest

Granting Snowden asylum would add new tensions to US-Russian relations already strained by a number of issues including sanctions against the regime of Syrian president Bashar Assad.

How long the asylum process could take is unclear. The Federal Migration Service is required to consider the application within three months, but could speed up the process.

Snowden is believed to have spent his time since arriving in Moscow in the Sheremetyevo Airport transit zone, which is technically not Russian territory.

Russian news reports have suggested the former National Security Agency contractor could be taken to one of the facilities operated by the migration service for those seeking refugee status.

Vladimir Putin has warned Snowden not to cause any more problems

President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday Snowden has been warned against taking any actions that would damage relations between Moscow and Washington.

On a visit to the Siberian city of Chita, Mr Putin was quoted as saying: "We have warned Mr Snowden that any actions by him connected with harming Russian-American relations are unacceptable."

Earlier White House spokesman Jay Carney said the wrangle over Snowden should not be allowed to damage relations with Moscow, which had provided the fugitive with a "propaganda platform".

"He is not a human rights activist, he is not a dissident," Mr Carney said. "He is accused of leaking classified information. For those reasons, he should be returned to the United States.

"We want to continue (our) relationship unimpeded by this issue and we believe there is a way to move forward here that allows for Mr Snowden to return to the United States ... and for Russia to resolve this situation that they have been dealing with now for three weeks."

Snowden is refusing to go back to the US, which has revoked his passport. He has been offered asylum in Venezuela, Bolivia and Nicaragua, but says Washington is making it impossible for him to leave Russia.

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