Snowden ‘must stop whistleblowing’ to stay in Russia

Former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden will have to stop leaking US secrets if he wants to get asylum in Russia, President Vladimir Putin said yesterday — but he believes he has no intention of doing so.

Mr Putin’s statement came hours after Mr Snowden asked for political asylum, according to a consular official at the Moscow airport where the leaker has been caught in legal limbo for more than a week.

US president Barack Obama said there have been high-level discussions between the US and Russia about Mr Snowden’s expulsion, though Mr Putin repeated that Russia will not send him back to the United States.