American ballerina released from Russia in prisoner exchange: Rubio
by Filip Timotija - 04/10/25 8:01 AM ET
Ksenia Karelina, a U.S.-Russian dual national who was detained last year on treason charges, was released from Russia in the latest prisoner exchange, according to the State Department.
“American Ksenia Karelina is on a plane back home to the United States. She was wrongfully detained by Russia for over a year and President Trump secured her release,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement Thursday on social platform X.
“@POTUS will continue to work for the release of ALL Americans,” he added.
Karelina, a former ballet dancer, was arrested in February 2024 in Yekaterinburg and found guilty by a Russian court in August 2024 of treason for donating just north of $50 to a U.S.-based Ukrainian charity. She was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
The State Department previously determined that Karelina, also known by the surname Khavana, was wrongfully detained. She was arrested after going back to Russia to visit her family.
Karelina moved to the Baltimore area in 2012 and in 2017, she relocated to Los Angeles. She obtained her U.S. citizenship in 2021 and a year later graduated from esthetician school, according to a website dedicated to her release.
more
https://thehill.com/policy/international/5242080-american-ballerina-released-from-russia/
