TEHRAN (defapress) - Russian diplomats provided both legal and moral support to Maria Butina at a time when the entire American system was aimed at forcing her to give in, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said upon Butina ’s arrival in Russia.

TEHRAN (defapress) - Moscow is ruling out the possibility of exchanging US citizen Paul Whelan, who Russia has charged with espionage, for Maria Butina , because Whelan has not been sentenced, according to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov.