Yaroshenko-Reed Exchange Was In Works For A Long Time - Lawyer

The swap of Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko for ex-US marine Trevor Reed was not unexpected, as it was in the works for a long time, Yaroshenko's lawyer told Sputnik on Wednesday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 27th April, 2022) The swap of Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko for ex-US marine Trevor Reed was not unexpected, as it was in the works for a long time, Yaroshenko's lawyer told Sputnik on Wednesday.

"We expected that the exchange likely would happen this week. This is not something that just came without any expectation," Alexey Tarasov said.

"This was something that was in the works for a very long time."

Tarasov described the Russia-US prisoner exchange, which took place after Orthodox Easter, as an "Easter miracle."

"There was not any certainty that this would happen. However, Yaroshenko was cautiously optimistic, and he obviously was very happy to know that there is progress in the direction of the possible exchange," he added.