Sep. 15 () –
US President Joe Biden will meet at the White House on Friday with relatives of basketball player Brittney Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan, both US citizens imprisoned in Russian prisons.
According to the White House spokeswoman, Karine Jean-Pierre, with this meeting the president seeks to convey to the relatives of Griner and Whelan his “ongoing commitment” to bring both back to the United States.
“(Biden) wants to let you know that they are still around and that his team is working through this every day, making sure that Brittney and Paul come home safe and sound,” Jean-Pierre said during a press conference, reports ‘The Hill’.
Griner, a WNBA player, was arrested in February and later sentenced to nine years in prison by the Russian Justice after pleading guilty to transporting cannabis oil cartridges in her luggage. For his part, former US Marine Paul Whelan is also imprisoned in a Russian prison accused of espionage.
US authorities have so far failed in their attempts to agree a prisoner swap with Russia. Washington offers in exchange for Griner and Whelan the arms dealer Viktor Bout, known as the ‘merchant of war’, who is serving a 25-year prison sentence in the United States.
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