US, Russia negotiations on release of ex-US Marine still ongoing

Negotiations between the United States and Russia on the release of former US Marine Paul Whelan are still ongoing. The update follows the release of WNBA player Brittney Griner in an exchange.

The lawyer for Whelan told Russia’s Interfax news outlet Thursday that negotiations are still taking place to secure the former US Marine’s release. The negotiations are continuing even after Russia released Griner in exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout.

“Whelan is currently in the penal colony,” said Whelan’s lawyer Vladimir Zherebenkov, according to Interfax. “Discussions about his exchange are continuing at the level of the intelligence services, so everything is quite closed – but they are going on.”

Whelan was convicted in 2020 for allegedly spying after a closed-door trial criticized by US diplomats as unfair and opaque. The former Marine was sentenced to 16 years in a maximum security penal colony. Whelan has denied all the charges made against him.

US President Joe Biden lauded Griner’s release, saying that the swap took place after what were “painstaking and intense” negotiations. The US leader also said that his administration would keep working to ensure all US citizens detained overseas, such as Whelan, are brought home.

“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 are not giving up. We will never give up,” said Biden at the White House event announcing Griner’s release.

The exchange of Griner and Bout took place amidst months of tensions between Moscow and Washington shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Griner was transferred from the Russian penal colony, where she was placed, then to Moscow and then brought to Abu Dhabi, where the exchange occurred with Griner and Bout walking past each other, according to US officials.

Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, thanked the Biden administration for getting the WNBA star home. Cherelle Griner added that she and her wife will also stay “committed to the work of getting every American home.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken stressed that the situation was not a “choice of which American to bring home,” but rather it was either the release of one or no release at all.