The United States announced the continuation of negotiations with Russia on the release of Whelan
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The United States is actively negotiating with Moscow to release American convicted spy Paul Whelan as part of a prisoner exchange, said John Kirby, strategic communications coordinator at the White House National Security Council.
“We continue to have active discussions with our Russian interlocutors aimed at securing the release of Paul. I will not go into the details of these discussions,” he noted (quote according to TASS).
In August, it became known that Washington offered Moscow to exchange the Russian Viktor Bout for the Americans Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan. On December 8, Greiner was exchanged for Bout at the Abu Dhabi airport. Before the exchange, Greiner and Booth were pardoned, they will not have to serve their sentences in their countries.
However, Whelan was not included in the exchange scheme. According to US President Joe Biden, this was due to the fact that Moscow treats Whelan “differently than Greiner.” The American leader stressed that Washington had not forgotten about the convict.
Paul Whelan was detained in Moscow at the end of 2018 on suspicion of espionage. The defense argued that the American was the victim of a provocation. Whelan himself pleaded not guilty. He is currently serving a 16-year sentence in a strict regime colony in Mordovia.
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