Whistleblower Edward Snowden could call Russia his home for longer than he anticipated. The Russian government announced Friday they will not deport the former National Security Agency contractor once his asylum is over.
Alexy Pushkov, head of the Foreign Affairs Committee in Russia's lower house, made the announcement at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, CNN reported. Pushkov said Russia will extend Snowden's protection when his asylum ends this summer.
Snowden has been in Russia since June 2013, where he was granted asylum for one year. Snowden fled the U.S. last year after he leaked classified NSA documents detailing the government's surveillance of the Internet and phone activities of Americans.
Snowden, 30, told CNN in an interview Thursday that he would like to return to the U.S. However, that won't happen anytime soon if the U.S. does not offer Snowden the whistleblower protection he seeks.
Returning home "is the best resolution for all parties," Snowden told CNN through an online chat, but "it's unfortunately not possible in the face of current whistle-blower protection laws."
Because Snowden was a contractor for NSA and not an employee, his position does not grant him whistleblower protection.
"There are so many holes in the laws, the protections they afford are so weak, and the processes for reporting they provide are so ineffective that they appear to be intended to discourage reporting of even the clearest wrongdoing," Snowden told CNN. "...My case clearly demonstrates the need for comprehensive whistle-blower protection act reform."
The U.S. has maintained that it will not grant Snowden clemency. If he returns Snowden faces charges of theft of government property and espionage.
"If Mr. Snowden wanted to come back to the United States and enter a plea, we would engage with his lawyers," Attorney General Eric Holder said, CNN reported.
