Richard Bliss, the American technician charged with spying in Russia, has arrived back in the United States to spend New Year with his family.

Mr Bliss, who works for the telecommunications company Qualcomm, has agreed to return to Russia on January 10 to face the charges.

He was detained on November 25 in Rostov-on-Don while installing a wireless telecommunications system for the Russian company Elektrosvyaz.

Russia's security service maintains he was carrying out surveillance of restricted sites.

He was charged on December 5 with espionage and bringing equipment into Russia without proper documentation.

The charges could bring the 29-year-old a jail term of up to 20 years.

They outraged Washington, which denied he was involved in espionage and warned that the harassment of a legitimate businessman could prompt US businesses to stay out of Russia.

President Bill Clinton's top aides personally intervened on behalf of Mr Bliss and told their Russian counterparts that he should be released.

US senators sent the Russian President Boris Yeltsin a strongly-worded letter, warning that the charges against Mr Bliss presented "a major threat to the future of US-Russian relations."

The December 8 letter, signed by Republican Jesse Helms and Senate leader Trent Lott, said it was "appalling that a charge of espionage was brought against this field technician who was working side by side with Russian counterparts on a cellular phone project."

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