Russian foreign minister says Nadiya Savchenko will be a headache for Ukraine now that she's home

Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov says he believes the exchange of former Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko for two Russian nationals was the right thing to do, and he warns that she's now Kiev's problem.

“I believe that [releasing Savchenko] was the right thing to do. We needed to bring back our citizens, which is precisely what happened,” Lavrov said. “And if Savchenko begins to perpetrate vile acts against Russia? Is there currently anyone in Ukraine who does not perpetrate vile acts? Let Savchenko now be Ukraine’s headache. The young lady is peculiar and, despite having announced a hunger strike, is rather well-nourished.”

On May 25, 2016, Vladimir Putin signed a decree pardoning Savchenko for her alleged involvement in the killings of two Russian journalists in eastern Ukraine and released her from a 22-year sentence in a Russian prison. Savchenko was exchanged for Russian citizens Yevgeni Yerofeev and Alexander Aleksandrov, who were sentenced to 14 years in prison in Ukraine for illegally crossing the Russian-Ukrainian border, for possessing illegal arms, and for being involved in a terrorist organization.