State Department confirms “serious proposal” for Whelan’s release

The US made a “serious offer” to Russia regarding the release of convicted espionage Paul Whelan, reported State Department representative in a comment to TASS.

“We have made a serious offer to Russia for Paul’s release and will continue to work on his case until he is reunited with his family,” he said.

Earlier today about Washington’s “serious proposal” reported also CNN. According to the channel, Whelan, in his August conversation with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, expressed dissatisfaction with the slow pace of work towards his release. Russia, he believes, considers him “a very valuable person, so they want something valuable” in exchange for his release.

Whelan was detained in Moscow at the end of 2018 on suspicion of espionage. The defense argued that the American was the victim of provocation. Whelan himself did not admit guilt. He is currently serving a 16-year sentence in a maximum security colony in Mordovia.

The American side regularly reports on efforts to return Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich to the United States. In May, CNN, citing sources in the American administration, reported that Washington was exploring the possibility of easing sanctions against Russia in order to free Americans imprisoned in Russia. Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov refused to comment on this topic. In August, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, called reports about the US readiness to consider the possibility of exchanging Gershkovich and Whelan with Russia as speculation.