The boldest move would be for Putin to let Snowden board a nuclear sub and let him go freely to his chosen destination, under the protection of the Russian navy.
If Putin's willing to go to that level of provocation, why bother with a sub? Sending him on a surface ship is easier, cheaper, and less of a security risk. It's not like the US is going to try to board a Russian military vessel.
> It was the US Navy’s biggest jolt in years. On October 26, 2006, a Chinese Song-class attack submarine quietly surfaced within nine miles of the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk as the 80,000-ton-diplacement vessel sailed on a training exercise in the East China Sea between Japan and Taiwan.
>The Song-class vessel, displacing 2,200 tons, was close enough to hit the Kitty Hawk with one of its 18 homing torpedoes. None of the carrier’s roughly dozen escorting warships detected the Song until it breached the surface.
My point was that if Snowden were to travel by plane then there is a high probability that it could be forced to be grounded and Snowden captured then sent to Gitmo.
But if he were to travel by submarine, he would be untouchable from the US Navy.
My point was that if Putin were willing to send Snowden elsewhere, why not just use a regular military surface ship. Or, for that matter, why not fly him in a Russian air force transport?
It's silly to think the US would get into a military engagement with Russia just to capture Snowden. At this point, he's not that valuable to either side, except as a propaganda tool. Hell, Putin would probably do a happy dance if the US were stupid enough to do something like that. The sabre rattling in the Ukraine has made him very popular - one can only imagine what a revived cold war rivalry would do for him; in the short term, at least.
