Indicted Smuggler of Dual-Use Items Included in US-Russia Prisoner Swap

One of the Russians included in a Washington-Moscow prisoner swap this week was indicted in 2022 as part of a scheme to illegally export dual-use goods to Russia. Vadim Konoshchenok, who was charged alongside other Russians for their role in a global procurement and money laundering network for the Russian government (see 2212130075), is part of the group of prisoners the Biden administration is sending to Moscow in exchange for jailed American journalist Evan Gershkovich, ex-U.S. Marine Paul Whelan and others, according to multiple news reports. Konoshchenok was arrested in Estonia in 2023 and extradited to the U.S.