Prisoner Swap for Brittney Griner’s Return Considered “Positive Signal”, Claims Russian Foreign Minister
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via Getty
US WNBA basketball superstar Brittney Griner arrives to a hearing at the Khimki Court, outside Moscow on June 27, 2022. – Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medallist and WNBA champion, was detained at Moscow airport in February on charges of carrying in her luggage vape cartridges with cannabis oil, which could carry a 10-year prison sentence. (Photo by KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images)
The Russian deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov has recently given some updates on the prisoner swap deal involving WNBA star Brittney Griner. Washington and Moscow have been busy negotiating a prisoner swap for Brittney Griner and retired US marine Paul Whelan for a few months now. The White House had offered to release a convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout in the exchange. However, the deal has not yet been finalized despite months of negotiations. Meanwhile, Brittney Griner faces the horrors of a Mordovian penal colony.
Recently, Ryabkov claimed that the prisoner swap deal involving Brittney Griner would be seen as a ‘positive signal’ between the two countries. On November 29, the senior Russian diplomat spoke to the media regarding the prisoner swap negotiations with the US. Ryabkov spoke positively about the chances of a swap being finalized before the end of the year. He reckoned that there was always a ‘chance’ of a deal being finalized.
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Ryabkov gives positive take on prisoner swap for Brittney Griner
Sergei Ryabkov revealed there were a number of occasions when the deal was almost done, but it never came through. He also stated that there’s always a chance of the deal falling in place.
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Further, Ryabkov stated that the prisoner swap “would undoubtedly send a positive signal that not everything is so utterly hopeless in Russian-US relations. Such a signal would be appropriate if we could work it out.”
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The Russian diplomat suggested that the prisoner swap deal for Brittney Griner could send the world a positive message about US-Russia relations. In other words, Ryabkov seemed to have expressed Russia’s positivity in working out a prisoner swap deal with the US. At the same time, the Russian minister also criticized the White House for speaking up about the prison swap negotiations in public.
Russia criticizes the US strategy
Sergei Ryabkov revealed that the dialogues on the prisoner swap between the two countries were currently inactive. Moreover, the Russian diplomat reiterated Moscow’s request of keeping the negotiations under wraps and refrain from making any public statements.
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The Kremlin seemed to have blamed the US authorities for the delay in finalizing a prisoner swap for Brittney Griner. However, Russia’s recent display of interest in making the deal would come as positive news for Griner and her supporters.
Written by:
Edited by:
Satagni Sikder
