Biden’s US-Russia prisoner swap: what about Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan?
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The Biden administration last week participated in a prisoner swap with Russia, swapping a convicted Russian drug smuggler jailed in Connecticut for Trevor Reed, a Navy veteran jailed in Russia since 2019. Meanwhile, the fates of WNBA superstar Brittney Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan remain unclear.
What is clear is that leaders in Washington and Moscow are still talking, despite the daily stuttering and saber-rattling after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Brittney Griner
Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, was arrested at Moscow airport on February 17 for allegedly possessing cannabis oil in her luggage.
Like other athletes who play abroad in the off-season for extra income, Griner has played on a Russian team for the past seven years. The large gender pay gap in professional sports puts women at additional risk.
Paul Whelan
Whelan, a former Marine arrested in Moscow in 2018, was sentenced to 16 years hard labor for espionage and is still being held in Russia.
For both Griner and Whelan, Reed’s release most likely sparked disappointment at being left behind, especially in the knowledge that such deals are still possible despite tensions between the White House and the Kremlin.
Whelan raised his concerns directly with President Joe Biden: “Why was I left behind? While I’m glad Trevor is home with his family, I’ve been held for 40 months on a fictional espionage charge,” Whelan said from his Moscow jail. “Why wasn’t more done to secure my release?”
Griner’s wife also breaks her silence: “As I do everything in my power to bring BG home, my heart is overflowing with joy for the Reed family,” Griner’s wife, Cherelle, wrote on Instagram. “I don’t know her personally, but I know the pain of having your loved one detained in a foreign country. This level of pain is constant and can only be resolved by returning home safely. For the Reed family, that day is today.”
RELATED: State Department: Update on WBNA star Brittney Griner’s detention in Russia
President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken released statements praising Reed’s release and promising to bring home Americans wrongfully detained abroad.
NBC reported that Biden administration officials said they were “very aware that other Americans are being held in Russia,” adding that Whelan and Griner are “very much on our minds today, even as we feel so deeply about the.” Happy news about Trevor Reed.”
This article originally appeared on Benzinga and has been republished with permission.
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