Former U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, who exposed the scale of secret surveillance by the National Security Agency, has sworn an oath of allegiance to Russia and received a Russian passport, Russian News Agency TASS reported on Friday.
"Yes, he got [a passport], he took the oath," Anatoly Kucherena, Snowden's lawyer, told TASS.
Snowden, 39, did not immediately reply to a message seeking comment.
President Vladimir Putin in September granted Russian citizenship to Snowden, who fled the United States after leaking secret files that revealed the extensive eavesdropping activities of the U.S. and its allies.
Defenders of Snowden hail him as a modern-day dissident for exposing the extent of U.S. spying. Opponents say he is a traitor who endangered lives by exposing the secret methods that Western spies use to listen in on hostile states and militants.
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