WNBA Star, Brittney Griner Arrives Back in US After Prisoner Swap
Words Destiny Fakoya
After being released from a Russian prison in exchange for Viktor Bout, the convicted Russian arms dealer, Brittney Griner landed in the United States on Friday. The exchange put an end to Ms. Griner's ten-month incarceration. Her drug smuggling conviction was complicated by the deteriorating ties between Russia and the US following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. After Mrs Griner arrived in the U.S she was subsequently transported to the Brooke Army Medical Center, where she would be assessed and get any necessary medical care, from the Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston of the Army, the facility confirmed in a statement.
She was swapped for Viktor Bout who is popularly referred to as the ‘Merchant of Death’ known for dealing arms. Prior to the swap Bout was serving a 25-year prison term in a US jail for a variety of offences, including planning to kill Americans. However, Ms Griner prison swap has generated a large amount of criticism as many conservative argue why Paul Whelan a US Marine who has been held captive in Russia for the past four years, was left out of the agreement. I don't understand why I'm still sitting here, said Mr. Whelan to CNN after learning he was not included in the prisoner swap, calling it a "huge disappointment."
President Joe Biden claims that "we have not forgotten about Paul Whelan" and vowed to "never give up" winning his release. Additionally, the White House was compelled to refute Saudi Arabia's and the UAE's assertions that MBS was the deal's chief negotiator. Nevertheless, the majority of conservative opponents of the prisoner swap that released infamous arms trader Viktor Bout for Griner, argued that Mr. Whelan should not have been left out of the agreement. With Many referring to the Trump presidency, from their perspective had he still been in charge he would never have permitted the swap. Trump says ““No one cuts better deals than Biden,” he wrote sarcastically. “We get an awful America hating WNBA player, while Russia gets an INTERNATIONAL ARMS DEALER!”
Biden’s administration claims Whelan wasn’t included in the swap as Russia would only accept the proposal unless a spy serving a life sentencing for murder was swapped in his place. The US asked Germany if Vadim Krasikov, a Russian spy who had been found guilty of murder, might be released. The US was unable to secure the Russian's release through negotiation. Officials claim that the US did attempt to rescue Mr. Whelan by offering up other imprisoned Russians; however, Russia rejected those proposals.