Belarusian authorities urged Kyiv to include Inna Kardash in a potential prisoner exchange, a request officials say remains under practical review.
Belarusians have requested to include Inna Kardash in the exchange. Kardash previously worked as a journalist for Ukrainian media; the Security Service of Ukraine informed her of espionage suspicions.
This was stated during an interview by Bohdan Okhrimenko, head of the Secretariat of the Coordinating Headquarters for handling prisoners of war.
There was such a signal, but, apart from talks, there is nothing yet. We are open to proposals. We are not interested in keeping foreign criminals and spending budget funds on them while our illegally convicted citizens remain behind bars in inhumane conditions. If the communication yields practical proposals, we will consider them
– Bohdan Okhrimenko
When asked how Inna Kardash ended up at the Coordinating Headquarters, Okhrimenko replied: “The SBU and the Main Intelligence Directorate received information about her activities and began an operational game. She thought she was working at the Coordinating Headquarters. A pseudo-workplace was organized for her; she did not have access to the premises of the Coordinating Headquarters and was located elsewhere. The premises themselves were prepared to capture everything that happened there, and the materials provided to her contained no truthful information. When the SBU officers involved in her surveillance documented everything, her arrest was organized and she remains under investigation.”
The SBU and the Main Intelligence Directorate obtained information about her activities and started an operational game. She thought she worked at the Coordinating Headquarters. A fake workplace was organized for her; she did not have access to the premises of the Coordinating Headquarters and was located somewhere else. The premises themselves were prepared to record everything that happened there, and the materials provided to her did not contain any truthful information. When the SBU officers involved in her supervision documented everything, her detention was organized and she remains under investigation
– Bohdan Okhrimenko
According to law enforcement, in January in Kyiv they detained a 35-year-old hostile agent who had been working for the Belarusian KGB since 2015. She was charged with suspicion.
The Shevchenkivskyi District Court of the capital on January 22 ordered detention without bail for the Belarusian spy.
There are currently no official details about the exchange, but the Coordinating Headquarters’ position remains open to consider practical proposals.