By LUCY PAPACHRISTOU, GUY FAULCONBRIDGE and STEVE HOLLAND Reuters
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MOSCOW/WASHINGTON — Russia released a ballerina from Los Angeles on Thursday who had been sentenced to 12 years in jail for donating to a charity aiding Ukraine, in exchange for a man the U.S. had accused of crafting a global smuggling ring to spirit sensitive electronics to Russia’s military.

The exchange, which took place on the tarmac of Abu Dhabi airport, indicates significant detailed contacts between President Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin and the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, who says he wants to strike a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine.

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Footage on Russian state television showed Ksenia Karelina flying out of Russia. She is a dual citizen who a Russian court found guilty last year of treason for donating $51.80 to a U.S.-based charity providing humanitarian support to Ukraine.

A U.S. official said Karelina was expected to arrive at Joint Base Andrews, in Maryland, late on Thursday.

Arthur Petrov, a dual German-Russian citizen arrested in 2023 in Cyprus at the request of the U.S. for allegedly exporting sensitive microelectronics, was shown walking past Karelina towards a Russian plane where he underwent medical check-ups, complaining only of fatigue.

“Petrov was exchanged for U.S. citizen Ksenia Karelina, who also holds Russian citizenship and was sentenced to 12 years in a penal colony for treason in the form of financial assistance to a foreign state,” Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said.

“We express our gratitude to the UAE leadership for their assistance,” the FSB said. The UAE posted a picture of Karelina on the tarmac in Abu Dhabi beside a Russian plane.

A U.S. official told Reuters that U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff brought up the case of Karelina with Putin during a call last week and that Putin’s reaction was to “do something as a goodwill gesture because he wants to settle the war.”

U.S. talks with Russia and Ukraine about ending the war were to continue and Witkoff would travel to Russia soon, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.