Snowden may be on transit flight via Moscow

MOSCOW - Former U.S. CIA agent Edward Snowden may be travelling on a transit flight via Moscow, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Sunday.

"According to some reports, Snowden may be traveling via Moscow as a transit passenger," the ministry's information department said, adding it was verifying the information.

Local media reported that Snowden was on a flight from China's Hong Kong to Moscow for a third country.

Police at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport said it has no plan to detain Snowden if he holds valid visa when arriving in Moscow.

"We have not received any instructions concerning this person. However, in order to enter Russian territory he should have a valid visa," Interfax news agency quoted a policeman in the airport as saying.

Earlier Sunday, the government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of China confirmed that the U.S. whistleblower Snowden had left the region for a third country.

"Snowden has left Hong Kong through legal and normal means for a third country," the HKSAR government said in a statement.

"The government has informed the U.S. government of Snowden's departure from Hong Kong," the statement said.