Former US National Security Agency (NSA) employee Edward Snowden said he was trapped in Russia because his American passport was cancelled. He said this in an interview with American TV presenter Joe Rogan, which is published on YouTube.

Snowden recalled that he was heading to Latin America when US authorities cancelled his passport. As a result, he was “blocked” in Russia. “My life is not easier because I am locked in a country that I did not choose,” the former NSA official shared. According to him, it is difficult to simultaneously be in opposition to the authorities of two countries – the United States and Russia.

In an interview, Snowden also said that he does not feel love for the Russian authorities. “ I did not choose to be here,” he stressed, adding that he openly criticized on Twitter the Russian president and some Russian laws. Snowden did not rule out that at some point Moscow might refuse to renew his residence permit, which must be renewed every three years.

At the same time, a former NSA officer noted that he had no other option and he understood what awaited him when he published the revelations.

In June 2013, Snowden began to transmit to the media secret documents on Internet and US intelligence services surveillance programs. After that, he flew to Hong Kong, then got stuck in the transit zone of the Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport and in August 2013 received temporary asylum in Russia. The last time the Russian authorities extended an ex-NSA employee a residence permit in January 2017. In the United States, Snowden faces the death penalty.