Edward Snowden has been in the perpetual glare of the international spotlight since the first publications of his NSA revelations last Summer. In a saga right out of a spy novel he managed to make it out of Hong Kong just before an extradition hearing could be convened. He then found himself stranded in the Moscow airport while a global game of cat and mouse between the US and its European allies on the one hand and Latin American countries that were willing to offer him asylum on the other. Finally Putin granted him a one year visa of temporary asylum.
In retrospect it becomes easier to understand just how this fit neatly into Putin's game of twisting the tail of the US cat. Since then the tensions between Russia and the west have escalated exponentially. Snowden is certain to become a rather powerless pawn is this high stakes global politics. He is now becoming a point of political controversy in Germany.
Investigating Surveillance: German Parliament Divided over Snowden Subpoena
The opposition parties in the German parliament are pushing to have Snowden come to Berlin and testify about the NSA spying on the German government. Merkel's governing coalition has attempted to show a get tough posture with Washington and London over the spying reports. However, they have gotten cold feet over the idea of rolling out the welcome mat to Snowden, a move certain to antagonize the US administration. Germany finds itself is a messy situation in dealing with the growing tensions with Russia. Washington is pushing a get tough on Putin agenda, but Germany is the nation with the most extensive economic relationship with Russia. Public opinion seems to lean slightly in a pro-Russian direction.
Last Summer Venezuela, Bolivia and Nicaragua made statements indicating an openness to the prospect of asylum. Glenn Greenwald has been pushing the Brazilian government to offer refuge. It is not clear if any of these offers are still open. Snowden's problem last Summer was how to get there without having to pass through air space controlled by countries inclined to cooperate with the US.
At this point it seems highly unlikely that Putin and Obama will suddenly become BFF by this Summer. That would make it seem likely that Putin would be inclined to extend the period of asylum. However, as the grand master of devious politics, it is not wise to make assumptions about what he will do. It seems likely that Edward Snowden must be getting pretty nervous about his future.