A lawmaker from Vladivostok who fled Russia after it invaded Ukraine has received asylum in the United States.

Viktor Kamenshchikov, who represented the Communist Party in the city’s legislature, said in a social media post on October 22 that his request for political asylum has been approved and he has been released from detention.

“I am free, I have received asylum, and now I can be a full member of American society. Was it a long process? Yes, but I don’t regret it at all,” he said in a Telegram post.