The U.S. had reportedly been pushing to bring both Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan back together, but Russian officials said it was the one-for-one swap with Griner and Viktor Bout, or nothing
after a prisoner swap was executed in the United Arab Emirates. The U.S. returned Russia convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout, while the Americans received Griner. to be with her family in the United States, the same cannot be said for 52-year-old former Marine Paul Whelan, who was arrested in 2018 on accusations of espionage and sentenced to 16 years in prison. Whelan was not part of the prisoner swap that brought Griner back to U.S. soil., the U.S.
“The Biden Administration made the right decision to bring Ms. Griner home, and to make the deal that was possible, rather than waiting for one that wasn’t going to happen,” David Whelan, Paul’s twin brother,During his press conference Thursday morning, Biden addressed Whelan’s status as it relates to Griner’s release, and that of another former Marine, Trevor Reed, in April.
“This was not a choice of which American to bring home,” he said. “We brought home Trevor Reed when we had a chance earlier this year. Sadly, for totally illegitimate reasons, Russia is treating Paul’s case differently than Brittney’s, and while we have not yet succeeded in securing Paul’s release, we will not give up.”
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