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Prison conditions of Russian citizen Maria Butina who is accused in the US of acting as an unregistered foreign agent, have improved, but her chronic illness has worsened, Ria Novosti reports referring to the Russian embassy in Washington.
"On August 9, our senior diplomats
visited the Russian citizen again, discussed her current affairs, and morally supported her. As a result of the démarches Maria's prison conditions have improved: she is allowed to use a gym, and the food became more qualitative. At last, she was examined by a dentist, and treatment was prescribed,” the embassy's message on Facebook says.
At the same time, diplomats note that due to the low temperatures in the cell Butina has had chronic arthritis exacerbation, but she is not allowed to take walks outside.
The embassy also reports that Butina has already received letters from "people who are not indifferent to her fate” and also communicates with relatives by phone. As the diplomats stress the Russian citizen intends "to continue to prove her innocence."
The Russian citizen was detained in July. She is accused of conspiracy to act as a foreign government agent without registration at the US Department of Justice as well as of actual acting as a foreign agent. She faces up to 15 years in jail. Butina said in court that she was not guilty.
In Moscow, the charges were called fabricated. Butina's lawyer stressed that she did not do anything illegal and her connections in the United States are completely explained by studying international relations at a local university. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said earlier that the Russian woman was detained just before the meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Helsinki in order to minimize the positive effect of the summit. It seems that the FBI was carrying out a political order, and accusations to Butina are far-fetched, the diplomat added.
Russkiy Mir
