Venezuela announced that it received a request for asylum from former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden on Monday, RT reports.
The announcement comes on the day of the deadline set by the Venezuelan government for Snowden to respond to its asylum offer, according to a public statement made by Venezuelan Foreign Minister Elias Jaua on Saturday.
“We are waiting until Monday to know whether he confirms his wish to take asylum in Venezuela,” reports NBC News.
Russian politician Alexei Pushkov wrote on Twitter on Sunday that Venezuela was Snowden’s “last chance to receive political asylum.”
Venezuela is one of three Latin American countries who have extended offers to consider Snowden’s asylum requests. The other two countries are Bolivia and Nicaragua.
Snowden’s request was dated “Moscow, June 30,” reports RT, a news outlet funded by the Russian government, which reported that Nicaragua also confirmed it had received a request from Snowden.
In the initial application letter, Snowden stated that he said it was unlikely he would receive a fair trial in the U.S. He feared his trial would most likely result in imprisonment, or even death.
Snowden is believed to be in the transit zone of Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport. He has not been seen since he left Hong Kong.
