MOSCOW - Russia will not extradite fugitive US intelligence whistleblower Edward Snowden to his home country, Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday.

"President Vladimir Putin has not participated in the discussion of the issue with US colleagues," Peskov told reporters, adding that the Federal Security Service (FSB) was in talks with its US counterpart FBI over Snowden's fate.

Peskov added that Russia would not hand Snowden over to the United States.

On Thursday, the Russian Justice Ministry said it had received a letter from US Attorney General Eric Holder explaining some aspects of the US position on the status of Snowden, but it had not contained an extradition request from Washington.