President Joe Biden spoke with the family of an American wrongfully detained in Russia a day after there was an outcry because he communicated with the family of another American imprisoned there.
Biden spoke with Cherelle Griner, the wife of WNBA superstar Brittney Griner, on Thursday following a significant public push for such a call from the president, though the family of Paul Whelan, an American who is serving a 16-year prison sentence for allegedly being a U.S. spy, expressed frustration with what Elizabeth Whelan, his sister, described as “uneven” treatment for the families of Americans wrongfully detained abroad.
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So, the president reached out to Whelan on Friday, she told the Washington Examiner.
“As you can imagine, I was extremely surprised to suddenly get a call from the president as I was walking down the street in [New York City]! He showed a great deal of concern and empathy about Paul’s situation, and like Jake Sullivan had the day before, reassured me that the [United States government] is doing all they can to get Paul home,” she said. “I have faith that this is so, while also remembering that despite the best efforts at our end, Russia still has a say in what happens going forward, as they are the ones engaging in hostage-diplomacy.”
“We hope that some reasonable agreement can be made to see both Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner come home as soon as possible,” Elizabeth Whelan said.
Brittney Griner pleaded guilty Thursday in a Russian court where she admitted to bringing two vaping cartridges filled with hashish oil into the country. She was arrested on Feb. 17 and has been detained since then. If convicted, she faces 10 years in prison.
After the president spoke with Cherelle Griner, Whelan told the Washington Examiner: “We can’t expect that the president is going to, you know, hand call and … write letters to every detainee, but if he decides to do it with one family, he needs to do it with all, and this was my frustration.”
A number of other family members of Americans wrongfully detained abroad agreed with the sentiment on social media.
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The U.S. and Russia agreed to a prisoner exchange in the spring, though neither Whelan nor Griner was included. The Russians agreed to give up Trevor Reed, a former Marine who had been held for more than two years, for the return of Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot serving a 20-year federal prison sentence in Connecticut for conspiracy to smuggle drugs.
A senior administration official said at the time that Reed’s deteriorating “health was a source of an intense concern” for Biden.
One possible scenario floated in Russian state media is that the U.S. would swap Viktor Bout, a well-known arms dealer who was given a 25-year prison sentence in 2011. Bout’s lawyer told the Washington Examiner earlier this week that he believes the Kremlin would agree to swap Griner and Whelan for Bout.
