
President Biden's prisoner exchange with Russia secured the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner on Thursday, but left U.S. Marine veteran Paul Whelan in Russian custody.
Whelan has been in Russian custody since 2018 when he was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges. Griner had been in Russian custody since February after authorities discovered vape cartridges containing a small amount of cannabis oil in her luggage.
Biden's administration had initially sought the release of both Griner and Whelan in exchange for notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout, a Russian citizen serving a prison sentence in America. Known colloquially as the "Merchant of Death," he was convicted in 2011 of conspiracy to kill Americans and sentenced to 15 years in prison.
The Biden administration ultimately agreed to exchange Bout for Griner alone, leaving Whelan behind in Russia.
Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine accused of espionage and arrested in
Russia in December 2018, stands inside a defendants' cage as he waits to
hear his verdict in Moscow on June 15, 2020.
WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner is escorted
from a courtroom after a hearing in Khimki, just outside Moscow, on
Aug. 4, 2022.
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting on the country's
transport industry via a video link in Sochi, Russia, on May 24, 2022.
Alleged Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout walks past temporary cells ahead
of a hearing at the Criminal Court in Bangkok on Aug. 20, 2010.
He pushed the Biden administration to be more aggressive in its efforts to get Americans released, going so far as to say the U.S. should arrest more Russians for exchange.
"As the use of wrongful detentions and hostage diplomacy continues around the globe, it's clear the U.S. government needs to be more assertive. If bad actors like Russia are going to grab innocent Americans, the U.S. needs a swifter, more direct response and to be prepared in advance," David argued. "In Russia's case, this may mean taking more law-breaking, Kremlin-connected Russians into custody. It's not like there aren't plenty around the world."
Biden says Griner will be back in the U.S. on Friday. He also vowed that his administration will continue negotiating for Whelan's release, adding that Russia is holding him for "totally illegitimate" reasons.