Biden administration offered to exchange Brittney Griner for Russian arms trafficker / News - Basketnews.com

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The Biden administration has put a proposal on the table with the goal to bring WNBA star Brittney Griner and jailed American Paul Whelan home from Russia, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.

Brittney Griner

Position:CAge:31Height:206 cmWeight:93 kgBirth place:Houston, United States of AmericaProfileNewsStatistics

Blinken did not offer details on the proposed deal but revealed that the deal includes a convicted Russian arms trafficker Viktor Bout, who has been at the top of Russia's prisoner exchange wish list.

"In the coming days, I expect to speak with Russian foreign minister [Sergey] Lavrov for the first time since the war began," Blinken revealed.

"I'm going to raise an issue that's a top priority for us, the release of Americans Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner, who have been wrongfully detained and must be allowed to come home," Blinken continued.

"We put a substantial proposal on the table weeks ago to facilitate their release. Our governments have communicated repeatedly and directly on that proposal," added the Secretary of State.

"I'm going to use that conversation to follow up personally and I hope to move us toward a resolution" Blinken concluded.

Russian arms dealer Bout, who is also known as the "Merchant of Death", was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2012 on charges that he has illegally schemed to sell millions worth of weapons.

The WNBA star Griner has pled guilty to drug-related charges after vape cartridges containing hashish oil were found in her luggage at a Moscow airport in February. She's been jailed since and faces up to 10 years in prison.

The Khimki Court of the Moscow Region on July 26th refused to let Griner out of her cage during interrogation due to the fact that she could not stand upright, but allowed her to testify while sitting.

A former marine Whelan is serving 16 years on espionage charges the United States has described as bogus.

The United States Department of Justice is usually against prisoner trade, but this might be one of the rare occasions when a trade does happen.

A plan for such an exchange has received the backing of President Joe Biden, according to CNN.

During months of internal discussions between US agencies, the Justice Department opposed trading Bout. However, Justice officials eventually accepted that a Bout trade has the support of top officials at the State Department and White House, including Biden himself.

"It takes two to tango. We start all negotiations to bring home Americans held hostage or wrongfully detained with a bad actor on the other side," a senior administration official told CNN.

The families of Whelan and Griner have urged the White House to secure their release, including via a prisoner exchange if it is required.

Grinner was a two-time Olympian and two-time world champion with Team USA and the 2014 WNBA Champion with Phoenix Mercury. The center is included in the official list of the 25 best players in the women's NBA. She has been playing for the Yekaterinburg UMMC since 2015.

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