BANGKOK (Sputnik) — Bout was arrested in Bangkok in 2008 in a joint operation between Thai and US authorities, who accused him of conspiring to kill US citizens by allegedly agreeing to supply Colombian militants with weapons.
The Russian Foreign Ministry believes that the case has been politicized and has called on Washington to release the Russian citizen.
"Will Trump be able to somehow unite the society and implement the necessary reforms and reinstate normal relations with Russia? If it happens, then there are prospects…. But it is better not to hope for something good regarding this process," Bout said answering a corresponding question.
In May 2016, the judge who sentenced Bout said that the verdict in the case was excessive and inappropriate, adding that she handed down the shortest sentence she could possibly give.