I think you do have to ask yourself what reasons the Russian government would have to not be interested in talking to Snowden as much as they possibly can, and the answer would be there are almost no reasons why it would not be in their self interest to do so - just as any other government would have extreme amounts of self-interest to talk to a self-confessed offensive hacker from another country's intelligence service.
ok, so by your theory Snowden is being waterboarded to hand over his laptops to the russians when he would just show them what he has in the first place?
Snowden has literally nothing to lose so whats your point?
I don't think anyone's suggesting he's being waterboarded. There is definitely a distinction between torture and interrogation.
He doesnt need to be interrogated. He is exposing an international fraud. If he is what he says he is, all he has to do is say Hi and the rest will follow.
I'd have thought a few civilized chats over dinner and some vodka would be the best way to handle something like this.
You know the figure worked in key area's of the NSA. His own passport has been cancelled. He is in a precarious position diplomatically and he is on your "home turf".
Any Spymaster worth their salt would not hesitate to act. To debrief and learn as much information the person has in exchange for asylum.