Freed arms dealer Viktor Bout says he supports Russia's war in Ukraine & would 'volunteer'

Viktor Bout, who was freed from the US in exchange for the basketball player Brittney Griner, has said that he will volunteer to go and fight for Russia amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, if that was possible, according to a report from Newsweek. Viktor Bout was giving an interview to Gazeta.ru, in which he said that he supports Putin's decision to go to war with Ukraine. Bout expressed bewilderment that the Russia-Ukraine war did not occur earlier. "A Russian man like me, I never understood why we didn't do this earlier," he said, according to the report. 

He also said that the West wants to destroy Russia. "The West believes that they did not finish us off in 1990, when the Soviet Union began to disintegrate....They think that they can just destroy us again and divide Russia," he said to Russia Today. However, whilst speaking about common Americans, he said that he did not experience any Russophobia during his time in prison. He claimed that many people he talked with expressed sympathy for Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin has garnered a lot of praise from Russian media for securing Bout's release. 

Who is Viktor Bout, the 'Merchant of Death?

Bout said that he looks ahead to seeing the snow, and living a normal life in Russia with his family. He has spent 11 years of his life in an American jail. Moreover, Bout is a Russian businessman and former military officer who is best known for being a prolific Russian arms dealer. He was born in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, in 1967 and served in the Soviet military before starting his own air cargo business in the 1990s.

Bout's air cargo business was based in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, and it quickly grew to become one of the largest in the world. However, it was also widely believed to be involved in illegal arms trading, and Bout became known as the "Merchant of Death" for his role in supplying weapons to various armed groups and governments around the world. Bout was arrested in 2008 in Thailand at the request of the United States, where he was indicted on charges of conspiracy to kill US nationals and support terrorism. He was extradited to the United States in 2010 and was convicted in 2011. In the US, he was serving a 25 year prison sentence. According to a report from CNN news, there has always been speculation that he was connected with the Russian intelligence and supplied weapons in different parts of the world in such a manner that it aligned with Moscow's geopolitical aims. 

The problem of illegal arms trade

Illegal arms trading refers to the buying, selling, or transferring of weapons in violation of national or international laws. This can include the sale of weapons to governments or armed groups that are subject to arms embargoes, the sale of weapons without proper licensing or documentation, or the sale of weapons that are illegal to possess under national or international law. The illegal arms trade is a global problem that has significant negative consequences for global security and stability. 

It allows weapons to reach the hands of criminals, terrorists, and other groups that pose a threat to public safety. It also undermines the efforts of governments and international organizations to promote peace and stability by imposing arms embargoes and other measures to control the flow of weapons. The illegal arms trade is difficult to track and regulate due to its covert nature. It often involves the use of intermediaries and front companies to disguise the true nature of the transactions, making it difficult for law enforcement agencies to identify and prosecute those involved.