German, U.S. and Russian authorities had discussed exchanging Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

Leaders around the world have blamed Putin for his death. Opinions differ on whether Navalny's death was caused by the harsh prison conditions or intentional murder.
Meanwhile, since 2021 Krasikov has been serving a life sentence for the murder of an exiled Chechen-Georgian dissident, Zelimkhan Khangoshvili, in Berlin in 2019. Investigative reports suggested that Krasikov is an agent of Russian intelligence agencies.

“Vladimir Putin wanted the Russian agent Vadim Krasikov, who is imprisoned in Germany. It was discussed that in exchange, Putin would release Navalny,” Bild said in a Telegram post.