AFP

President Vladimir Putin on Monday granted Russian citizenship to US whistleblower Edward Snowden, who exposed massive surveillance by the US National Security Agency on Americans and then sought refuge in Russia.

A presidential decree published Monday included Snowden on a list of newly-minted Russian citizens, at a time when relations between Washington and Moscow are at historic lows over the conflict in Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told news agencies that Snowden had received Russian citizenship as a result of his own request, made in 2020 to make it easier for his American wife Lindsay Mills to travel back and forth.

“After years of separation from our parents, my wife and I have no desire to be separated from our SONS,” Snowden wrote on Twitter.

“After two years of waiting and nearly ten years of exile, a little stability will make a difference for my family,” he said.

The former American intelligence contractor, 39, leaked secret documents to media outlets in 2013 revealing that the NSA was collecting massive amounts of communications metadata and other information on US citizens, in violation of their constitutional right to privacy.

The expose of the NSA’s secret spying program led to laws and regulations forbidding that activity.

After revealing those secrets, Snowden sought refuge in Russia. He married longtime girlfriend Mills in Moscow in 2017. 

Three years later they had a son, and Snowden said he would seek Russian citizenship to make it easier for his family to be together, especially given the travel restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic.

But he said he wanted to keep his US nationality.

“Lindsay and I will remain Americans, raising our son with all the values of the America we love — including the freedom to speak his mind. And I look forward to the day I can return to the States, so the whole family can be reunited,” he said at the time.

The couple had a second son earlier this year.

Snowden’s lawyer Anatoly Kucherena told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti that Mills would also now apply for Russian citizenship. 

– Dual US-Russian citizen –

US State Department spokesman Ned Price said Monday that Snowden, who has been charged with multiple felonies in US court, retains his American citizenship.

“I’m not aware of any change in his citizenship status,” Price said.

“The only thing that has changed is that as a result of his Russian citizenship, apparently now he may well be conscripted to fight in the reckless war” in Ukraine, he said.

Putin last week announced a mobilisation of 300,000 Russian reservists to contribute to the Russian army’s fight in Ukraine.

However, Kucherena said that Snowden would not be called up to serve given he had no prior experience in the Russian army.

The White House did not comment directly on Snowden’s Russian citizenship.

“Since I believe there have been criminal charges brought against him, we would point you to the Department of Justice for any specifics on this,” said White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

After he sought refuge in Russia, the US Justice Department filed a criminal complaint with three felony charges against Snowden: theft of government property, disclosing crucial US defense information, and providing classified materials to unauthorized persons.

“Mr Snowden should return to the United States where he should face justice as any other American citizen would,” said Price.

US officials announced fraud charges Monday against three men who orchestrated a $100 million scheme to inflate the market value of a company whose only revenue source was a small-town New Jersey delicatessen.

It is the latest twist in the odd saga of a Paulsboro, New Jersey deli owned by Hometown International, which saw its stock valuation soar in 2021 despite annual deli revenues of less than $40,000.

Now the company is the target of a criminal indictment by the Justice Department and civil charges by the Securities and Exchange Commission over the inflated $100 million market value.

The Justice Department charged James Patten and the father-son duo of Peter Coker Sr and Peter Coker Jr with a conspiracy in which they took control of two companies and their stock trading to artificially pump up equity valuations.

Hometown began selling shares on the OTC Marketplace in 2019 after which the three men took over the company, along with a second entity that traded on the OTC, E-Waste Corporation.

The trio shifted shares to shell companies to mask control, while transferring other shares to family members and friends whose log-in details they had obtained.

Having parties set up on both sides of the transaction, the men then used the accounts to perform a series of “match and wash trades” to pump up the value of Hometown by 939 percent and E-Waste by 19,900 percent, the Justice Department said.

“These tactics artificially inflated the price of Hometown International and E-Waste’s stock by giving the false impression that there was a genuine market interest in the stock,” said a DOJ press release.

Patten and Coker Sr were arrested Monday and scheduled to appear in federal court in North Carolina, while Coker Jr, who is based in Hong Kong, remains at large, DOJ said.

Airlines would be required to disclose fees for luggage or for passengers to sit next to their children prior to ticket purchase under a regulation proposed Monday by the Biden administration.

The action, proposed by the US Department of Transportation (DOT), responds to consumer complaints about hidden fees for services no longer typically included in the base fare.

Besides surcharges for checked or carry-on baggage and fees to sit with a child, airlines would also be required to disclose up front fees for changing or canceling a flight,  according to a DOT press release. 

The proposed rule, which will be open up to a 60-day public comment period, would also apply to third-party sellers of airline tickets, or online websites that list fares, DOT said.

“Airline passengers deserve to know the full, true cost of their flights before they buy a ticket,” said US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. 

“This new proposed rule would require airlines to be transparent with customers about the fees they charge, which will help travelers make informed decisions and save money.”

Airlines for America (A4A) said the industry already provides customers with clear information on ticket pricing, including taxes and government fees, which account for more than 20 percent of many ticket prices for domestic flights, said a spokesperson for the group, which represents large US carriers.

“A4A member passenger airlines — which are fierce competitors — already offer transparency to consumers from first search to touchdown,” the group said.

“A4A members offer a range of options — including fully refundable fares — to increase accessibility to air travel and to help customers make ticket selections that best fit their needs,” the group added.

“In addition to the total cost, the terms of ticket selection for these options are stated at the time of purchase.”

Cuba on Monday declared a cyclone alert in its six most western provinces as fast-approaching Hurricane Ian strengthened rapidly, with Florida also ramping up preparations ahead of a possible hit.

Authorities in Havana said they were ready to evacuate those from the most affected areas while supplying fresh drinking water and medical services.

“Given the continuing deterioration of the weather conditions… it was decided to establish from 0800 (1200 GMT) the Cyclone Alert Phase,” said the Civil Defense Staff on state media.

The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) warned Ian was expected to pass near the Cayman Islands and then over western Cuba late Monday and early Tuesday.

“Rapid strengthening is expected during the next day or so, and Ian is forecast to become a major hurricane,” it added, with current maximum sustained winds of 80 miles (130 kilometers) per hour.

Cuba’s Insmet meteorology institute said Ian was advancing at a speed of 22 kilometers per hour.

The six provinces put on alert are Pinar del Rio, Artemisa, La Habana, Mayabeque, Cienfuegos and Isla de la Juventud.

– ‘Huge storm surge’ expected –

In Florida, Tampa city was under a hurricane watch , and state Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in all 67 counties as officials scrambled to prepare for the storm’s forecast landing on late Wednesday or Thursday.

Ian “will bring heavy rains, strong winds, flash flooding, storm surge, along with isolated tornado activity along Florida’s Gulf Coast,” DeSantis said in a press conference in Tallahassee on Monday.

He warned people to prepare for power cuts.

“Even if the eye of the storm doesn’t hit your region, you’re going to have really significant winds, it’s going to knock over trees, it’s going to cause interruptions,” DeSantis said, warning of likely flooding.

The governor urged residents to stock up on food, water, medicine and fuel, and he activated 7,000 National Guard members to help with the effort.

Authorities in several Florida municipalities, including Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Tampa, started distributing free sandbags to residents to help protect their homes from the risk of flooding.

President Joe Biden approved emergency aid to 24 counties in Florida through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

NASA said it was rolling back its Artemis 1 rocket due to blast off to the Moon into its storage hangar at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida due to the hurricane.

– Fiona’s wake –

The Caribbean and parts of eastern Canada are still counting the cost of powerful storm Fiona, which tore through last week, claiming several lives.

When it arrived in eastern Canada, the storm packed intense winds of 80 miles per hour, bringing torrential rain and waves of up to 40 feet (12 meters).

Canadian authorities have confirmed two deaths caused when Fiona barreled into Nova Scotia and Newfoundland as a post-tropical cyclone early Saturday.

Prince Edward Island authorities confirmed the death of one person while officials in Newfoundland said they found the body of a 73-year-old woman believed to have been swept from her home. She was apparently sheltering in her basement when waves broke through.

“The devastation is immense,” Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston told reporters. “The magnitude of the storm is incredible.”

Storm surges swept at least 20 homes into the sea in the town of Channel-Port aux Basques, on the southwestern tip of Newfoundland.

Around 200 residents had been evacuated before the storm hit.

“Some people have lost everything, and I mean everything,” Button told CBC News.

Ankara on Monday summoned the Greek ambassador and protested to Washington after accusing Greece of deploying US armoured vehicles on two Aegean islands near the Turkish coast.

Greece branded the move as “completely unfounded and incompatible with international law”, and accused Ankara of aggressive behaviour.

Greece and Turkey, which are both part of the US-led NATO defence alliance, have feuded for years over maritime borders and energy exploration rights in the Aegean and east Mediterranean seas.

The latest escalation started when Turkish security sources shared aerial images over the weekend purportedly showing ships loaded with US armoured vehicles docking at two Greek islands, Lesbos and Samos. 

The Turkish foreign ministry told the Greek envoy that Athens should “stop violations” and respect the non-military status the islands were assigned by international law, the Anadolu state news agency reported.

In a note to the US embassy in Ankara, Turkey told Washington that its “weapons should not be used in breach” of the islands’ agreed status, Anadolu said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan separately accused Greece of staging “provocations” and playing “perilous games”.

A Greek diplomatic source said Athens rejected Ankara’s objections as “completely unfounded and incompatible with international law”.

The source added that the Greek ambassador had written two letters to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to set out his country’s stance in detail.

Erdogan has repeatedly accused Greece of “occupying” the Aegean islands, whose status was settled in treaties adopted after World War I.

In response, Athens accuses Turkey of conducting hundreds of illegal military sorties over the islands.

The Greek diplomatic source said Turkey had threatened its neighbour with war, accusing it of assembling a huge naval presence and violating Greece’s sovereignty and airspace. 

Greece filed a formal complaint with the European Union, NATO and the United Nations after Erdogan hinted at a possible military operation in the Aegean earlier this month.

Erdogan continued his war of words on Monday, saying Greece was not Turkey’s equal and rejecting diplomatic talks.

He also vowed to defend Turkey’s interests with “any means at its disposal” in the islands row.