Mikhail Khodorkovsky speaks during a news conference in Berlin, Sunday, December 22, 2013
Switzerland has granted former Russian oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky a visa.
Alexandra Baumann, a spokeswoman for the Swiss Embassy in Berlin, said on Monday that Khodorkovsky's application for the three-month visa has been approved. The visa allows him to travel freely within the 26-nation Schengen area, which includes Switzerland and much of the European Union, but not Britain.
Khodorkovsky's sons go to school in Switzerland and he has business ties there.
Khodorkovsky flew to Berlin on December 20, hours after being pardoned by Russian President Vladimir Putin and released from decade-long imprisonment. The German government gave him a one-year visa for Germany; Khodorkovsky then applied for a Swiss visa.