Paul Whelan

Russia and the United States have carried out an unexpected prisoner exchange in Turkey in a time of high tensions, trading on April 27 a Marine veteran jailed by Moscow for a convicted Russian drug trafficker serving a long prison sentence in America. 

Russia is ready to consider the issue of prisoner swap with the US, President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with NBC.

"Yes, of course," he said when asked a respective question.

Meanwhile Putin noted that much more Russian citizens are in US prisons than American citizens - in Russia.