In a strange twist to the case of Edward Snowden this week, Anna Chapman, a former Russian spy who went on to model in lingerie for men's magazines, tweeted a marriage proposal to the NSA-whistleblower.
Snowden, will you marry me?!
— Anna (@ChapmanAnna) July 3, 2013
The tweet from 31-year-old Chapman, who was expelled from the U.S. in 2010, was retweeted over 1,900 times.
Was Chapman serious? It does seem possible that a marriage to a Russian citizen could help Snowden, who recently lost his U.S. citizenship and is stuck in the transit zone of Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport, gain access to Russia or a third-party country.
According to RFE/RL, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov was forced to admit to reporters that he had no idea if the offer was serious or not. When asked via email if she was serious in her proposal by the Wall Street Journal, Chapman replied simply “you are welcome to use your imagination.”
In Russia the marriage proposal has added further fuel to the media circus surrounding Snowden's arrival. At least one major Russian media outlet is today reporting that Snowden has accepted Chapman's offer — though, unfortunately, they appear to be basing their report on a fake Twitter account.
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