Lithuanian President pardons two Russian spies

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda on Friday pardoned two Russian nationals in a move that could pave the way for a possible three-way spy exchange between Russia, Norway and Lithuania, its presidential office said Friday.

According to a statement, Nauseda signed the decree to pardon Nikolai Filipchenko and Sergei Moisejenko who are serving prison terms for espionage in Lithuania, reported Sputnik.

"Nikolai Filipchenko has been pardoned from serving the rest of his term in accordance with Article 79 (2) of Lituania's penal code... Sergey Moiseenko has been pardoned from serving the rest of his term", read the statement.

Earlier on Wednesday, local media reported that Lithuania's Pardon Commission would issue its recommendations for the president to pardon certain prisoners without revealing who those were. So far, the commission has considered around 123 pleas.

Both Russian were sentenced to prison terms in 2017 facing 10 and 10 years and six months of jail term respectively.

In October, Moscow and Vilnius reportedly managed to agree to an exchange. According to media, Russia was ready to release two Lithuanian nationals, sentenced for espionage in Russia in 2016 in exchange for Filipchenko.

The two Lithuanians were sentenced for allegedly sharing Russian military intelligence with Vilnius.