AFP/Moscow

Fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden applied yesterday for temporary asylum in Russia, ending three weeks of uncertainty after he arrived from Hong Kong to escape the clutches of US justice.

The US, which wants to put Snowden on trial for revealing sensational details of its spying operations, rubbished any notion that fugitive was a “dissident” and said he should be sent back home to face his charges.

Snowden made the application from the transit zone of state-controlled Sheremetyevo airport where he has been stuck for the last three weeks.

“The application has been filed with the Russian authorities,” said Kremlin-friendly lawyer Anatoly Kucherena, who attended a dramatic airport meeting between Snowden and rights activists, pro-Kremlin lawmakers and lawyers on Friday.

“There is no (other) way to resolve this situation,” Kucherena told AFP during an interview in Moscow.

He said that Snowden would remain at the airport while the asylum request was being processed. Only a translator had been present at their meeting yesterday to make the application, he added.

“He fears for his life, safety, he fears that torture or death penalty could be applied against him” should he return to the US, Kucherena said separately in televised remarks.

“And under these circumstances, understanding his position and situation, the Federal Migration Service should of course grant his request.”

Russian Channel One TV showed the letter handwritten in English which Snowden had handed over to the Russian authorities: “I hereby request your considering the possibility of granting to me temporary asylum in the Russian Federation,” it read.

The Federal Migration Service (FMS) confirmed it had received the application but the Kremlin sought in public to distance itself from the process.  Meanwhile, the US appealed once again to Moscow yesterday to expel Snowden.

“Our position on this remains what it was and is quite clear, which is that we believe there is ample legal justification for the return of Mr Snowden to the US, where he has been charged with serious felonies,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

“He is not a human rights activist, he is not a dissident, he’s accused of leaking classified information,” Carney added.

“He’s been charged with three felony counts related to the leaking of classified information, and for those reasons, he should be returned to the US.”

The US reacted to last week’s meeting by sharply criticising Moscow for giving Snowden a “propaganda platform.”

Carney said the White House had not been in contact with Moscow yesterday, but said Washington had made clear its position in conversations with Russian officials and those of other countries that might give Snowden asylum.