German chancellor says 'difficult' prisoner swap has 'saved lives'

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that the "difficult" decision to release a convicted Russian hitman as part of a major East-West prisoner swap had "saved lives."

"Nobody took this decision to deport a murderer sentenced to life imprisonment after only a few years... lightly," Scholz said from Cologne airport in western Germany, where some of the released prisoners were due to arrive.

AFP