The United States proposes exchanging prisoners with Russia

The United States said on Wednesday it had made a “substantial proposal” to Russia, which people familiar with the matter described as a prisoner swap that would send convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout back to Moscow to secure the American star’s release. professional basketball Brittney Griner and accused espionage Paul Whelan.

The proposal was made several weeks ago, in June, though to date nothing has come of it, even as officials from the two governments have discussed it. But US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, while refusing to discuss the details of the possible deal, told reporters in Washington that he hopes to raise the issue again this week in a phone call with his foreign minister counterpart. Foreign Affairs of Russia, Sergey Lavrov.

News of a possible prisoner swap came the same day that Griner, who admitted arriving in Russia in February with vape cans containing cannabis oil in his luggage, testified at a court hearing in which an interpreter provided him with a translation of only a fraction of what she was saying as the authorities arrested her.

Griner, who faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of transporting drugs, said officials ordered her to sign documents at the Moscow airport without being given an explanation of what she was acknowledging. A Russian court authorized her detention until December 20.

Whelan, a former US Marine, has been jailed in Russia for alleged espionage since 2018, with his and Griner’s family begging the White House to speed up efforts to win his release.

For years, Russia has sought the release of Bout, an arms dealer who was once labeled the “merchant of death.” He was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2012 following his conviction in a scheme to illegally sell millions of dollars worth of weapons.

The possible prisoner exchange was approved by US President Joe Biden, reported and Biden’s support overcame opposition from the Justice Department, which is generally against prisoner swaps for fear they will incentivize other governments to capture Americans abroad in the hope of prisoner swap deals from them.

At the White House, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby declined to give details of the negotiations with Russia at a time when the United States has led global opposition to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.

“But I will say that the president and his team are willing to go to extraordinary lengths to bring our people home, as we demonstrated with Trevor Reed, and that is what we are doing here,” Kirby said. “It’s actively happening now. This has been the most important thing for the president and his entire national security team.”

The United States secured Reed’s release in April. He was a former Marine who was held captive in Russia for more than two years after being accused of assaulting a Russian police officer. He was swapped for Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot serving a 20-year federal prison sentence for a cocaine-smuggling conspiracy.

In the sixth session of his slow trial, Griner testified Wednesday that he had no criminal intent to bring the cannabis oil to Russia. She said she still doesn’t know how the cannabis oil she had a doctor’s recommendation for ended up in her luggage.

She explained that she had packed in a hurry for the 13-hour flight from the US to Russia, where she planned to play during the Women’s National Basketball Association offseason.

Griner said she was not offered an explanation of her rights while in detention or access to attorneys to explain the documents she signed.

During a court session on Tuesday, a Russian neuropsychologist testified about the worldwide use of medicinal cannabis, but the drug remains illegal in Russia. Griner’s lawyers have submitted a letter from a US doctor recommending that he use medical cannabis to treat pain, which he says he has suffered during his basketball career.

Griner testified Wednesday that cannabis oil is widely used in the United States for medicinal purposes and has fewer negative side effects than other pain relievers.

But a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said last week that the legalization of cannabis for medical and recreational use in parts of the US had no bearing on what happens in Russia.

[Parte del material de este informe provino de The Associated Press y Reuters]

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