Brittney

12/12/22, 11:48 PM Viktor Bout–Brittney Griner prisoner exchange - Wikipedia
Viktor Bout–Brittney Griner prisoner

exchange
On December 8, 2022, the United States and Russia
conducted a prisoner exchange, trading Brittney Griner, a
Women's National Basketball Association player and Team
USA Olympic athlete who had been convicted of cannabis
possession in Russia earlier that year and sentenced to nine
years in prison, for Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer who
had been arrested in Thailand in 2008 and transferred to
the custody of the United States, where he was convicted of
terrorism-related charges and sentenced to 25 years in
prison in 2012.[1] The exchange took place at Al Bateen
Executive Airport in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Brittney Griner and Viktor Bout
following months of negotiations.
The possible release of former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, imprisoned in Russia on espionage charges
in 2018, was also part of U.S.–Russia negotiations. Russia refused to release Whelan along with
Griner as part of the prison exchange; President Joe Biden said that Russia was treating Whelan's
case differently "for totally illegitimate reasons".[2] The Russian position was that Whelan was an
agent and so required an exchange of comparable value such as assassin Vadim Krasikov.[3] Griner
and Bout were just considered criminals and so were of lesser value in their view.[4]
Marc Fogel, another American detained in Russia for possessing a small amount of marijuana, was
also not included in the prisoner swap.[5] However, Sarah Krivanek, an American detained for a
domestic violence dispute, was deported from Russia on the same day of Griner's release.[5]
Contents
Background on Bout
U.S. criminal charges, arrest in Thailand, and extradition to U.S.
U.S. prosecution and conviction
Sentencing and imprisonment
Background on Griner
Russian prosecution and conviction
Discussion of Paul Whelan and Marc Fogel
Prisoner exchange
Negotiations
Release
Reactions
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viktor_Bout–Brittney_Griner_prisoner_exchange 1/13
Notes
References
Background on Bout
In the years after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Bout became a notorious international
arms dealer, selling Soviet-made weaponry in Africa (including Angola and Sierra Leone, as well as
Liberia under Charles Taylor), in Asia (including to the Taliban), and in South America; his customers
included warlords, rogue states, and insurgent groups in war zones.[6][7] A 2002 Interpol warrant was
issued against Bout by Belgium for money laundering,[8] after it was issued, and amid international
pressure increasing, Bout fled to Moscow, where he lived in safety and was protected by Russian
authorities.[8][7]
U.S. criminal charges, arrest in Thailand, and extradition to U.S.
Bout was arrested in Bangkok, Thailand on March 6, 2008, after

being the target of a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration sting
operation, in which U.S. agents, claiming to represent the
Colombian rebel group FARC, negotiated with Bout for the supply
of 100 9K38 Igla surface-to-air missiles and armor-piercing rocket
launchers to be airdropped by Bout to agreed landing spots in
Colombia. The imposters invited Bout to Thailand to meet their
leader.[6][9][10] U.S. prosecutors and law enforcement were aided Viktor Bout in the custody of DEA
by Andrew Smulian, a former South African intelligence agent and agents on November 16, 2010, after
associate of Bout who acted as a go-between and became an being extradited to the United States
informer against Bout.[6][11]
After his arrest by Royal Thai Police in March 2008, based on an Interpol red notice requested by the
U.S.,[12] Bout and the Russian government fought against Bout's extradition to the United States, but
the Thai courts ultimately ruled (in 2010) that he could be extradited to face trial in U.S. federal
court.[13][14][15][16] On November 16, 2010, Bout was extradited from Thailand to the United States
amid protests by the Russian government, who deemed it illegal.[17][18][19]
U.S. prosecution and conviction
Bout's arrest in Thailand in March 2008 was based on a U.S. Department of Justice criminal
complaint filed by prosecutors in Manhattan federal court,[20] which was unsealed the day after his
arrest.[21] In May 2008, Bout was indicted on four federal terrorism-related charges: conspiracy to kill
U.S. nationals; conspiracy to kill U.S. officers and employees; conspiracy to acquire and use anti-
aircraft missiles; and conspiracy to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign
terrorist organization.[20][22][23] Additional charges against him were filed in February 2010.[24]
These included illegal purchase of aircraft, wire fraud, and money laundering.[25]
On November 2, 2011, after a three-week jury trial in the United States District Court for the Southern
District of New York, a federal court in Manhattan, Bout was convicted on all charges.[20][26] On April
5, 2012, Bout was sentenced to 25 years in prison, the minimum sentence for conspiring to sell
weapons to a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist group.[27][28] US District Court Judge Shira Scheindlin
ruled that the minimum sentence was appropriate because "there was no evidence that Bout would
have committed the crimes for which he was convicted had it not been for the sting operation".[27]
Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement denouncing Bout's sentence as "a political
order".[27] During the trial, Bout's lawyers implied that he was a political prisoner.[27] Bout's wife Alla
said shortly afterwards that the judge conducted the trial in a proper way.[29] Bout claimed that if the
same standards were applied to everyone, all American gun shop owners "who are sending arms and
ending up killing Americans" would be in prison.[30]
In September 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld Bout's conviction. The
court rejected Bout's contention that he had been the victim of a vindictive prosecution and that there
was no legitimate law enforcement reason to prosecute him.[31] In 2014, Bout hired the law firm of
former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft to represent him, seeking a new trial based on claimed
"newly discovered evidence";[32] the courts rejected Bout's claim, finding it meritless.[33]
Prior to the 2022 prisoner swap, Bout had been scheduled for release in August 2029.[34]
Background on Griner
Brittney Griner is an American professional and Olympic basketball
player. Beginning in 2014, she was hired during the WNBA offseasons to
play basketball for the Russian team, UMMC Ekaterinburg. On February
17, 2022, Griner was detained at Sheremetyevo International Airport
after the Russian Federal Customs Service found she was carrying
vaporizer cartridges containing less than a gram of hash oil; in Arizona
she had been prescribed medicinal cannabis which is illegal in
Russia.[35][36][37] Some U.S. officials expressed concern that Russia may
have been using her as leverage in response to the Western sanctions
imposed against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine in February of that
year. Former Pentagon official Evelyn Farkas expressed concern that
Griner could be used as a "high-profile hostage" by Russia.[38][39] Brittney Griner
Houston, Texas Democratic Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee called
for Griner's release.[40][39]
In an interview with CNN, California Democratic Congressman John Garamendi estimated that it
would be "very difficult" to get Griner out of Russia. He stated that although there might be
negotiations to have her released, they would be stymied by the fact that diplomatic relations between
Russia and the United States were strained because of President Vladimir Putin's invasion of
Ukraine.[41] In March 2022, Russian state news agency TASS reported that a Moscow court had
extended the period of Griner's detention while under investigation until May 19, with an official from
the Russian Public Monitoring Commission stating that "the only objective problem has turned out to
be the basketball player's height. The beds in the cell are clearly intended for a person of lesser
height".[42] On March 23, the United States Department of State stated that an American diplomatic
official had been able to visit Griner in detention, reporting that she was "in good condition".[43]
In early May 2022, the U.S. State Department stated that they had determined Griner was being
"wrongfully detained", indicating a more aggressive approach towards securing her release.[44] On
May 13, CNN reported that the Russian court extended her pre-trial detention to June 18, 2022.[45]
Griner's Russian attorney Alexander Boykov told the Associated Press he believed the relatively short
extension of the detention indicated the case would come to trial soon.[46] On May 15, it was reported
that the United States and Russia would consider a prisoner swap, with Russia exchanging Griner for
Bout, who has served 10 years of a 25-year federal prison sentence in the United States for illegal arms
dealing.[47] In May 2022, in her first public interview since Griner was detained, Griner's wife
Cherelle spoke to Good Morning America and called Griner a "political pawn".[48] Cherelle stated she
has heard from Secretary of State Antony Blinken, saying, "I was grateful for the call. You say she's top
priority, but I wanna see it".[48]
Russian prosecution and conviction
In a closed-door hearing on June 27, a court in Khimki scheduled

Griner's trial to begin on July 1 and extended her detention by six
months pending the outcome of her case, according to her
attorney, Alexander Boykov. She was photographed by the
Associated Press and Agence France-Presse arriving at the
hearing.[49][50] On the second day of her trial, July 7, Griner pled
guilty[a] and then said, "But there was no intent. I didn't want to
break the law". Griner requested that she be allowed to give Fans at the 2022 NWSL
testimony to the court as soon as she has had sufficient time to Championship were invited to write
prepare.[52][51] letters to Griner.
On August 4, the court found Griner guilty and sentenced her to nine years in prison. They
additionally fined her 1 million rubles (US$16,301).[53] On November 17, Griner's lawyers said that
she was transferred to IK-2, a female penal colony in the town of Yavas in the region of Mordovia;[54]
previously she was held in an undisclosed location.[55]
Discussion of Paul Whelan and Marc Fogel

Other individuals whose names were brought up in connection
with a potential prisoner exchange included Paul Whelan and
Marc Fogel.
Paul Whelan was arrested in 2018 for espionage in Moscow, and

sentenced to 16 years in prison. Family members said Whelan had
initially been told that he had been arrested to be exchanged for a
Russian prisoner in the United States, mentioning Konstantin
Yaroshenko (who was later released in return for American Trevor
Reed), Viktor Bout, or Roman Seleznev.[56] On July 27, 2022, it
was announced that President Joe Biden had authorized a trade
for Whelan and Griner in exchange for Bout.[57]
Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan
Marc Fogel was arrested at a Moscow airport in August 2021, after authorities discovered 17 grams of
cannabis in his luggage.[58][59] Fogel had been working as a history teacher at a Moscow school, and
was sentenced to 14 years in prison at a Russian hard labor camp.[58]
After negotiations, only Griner was exchanged for Bout on December 8, 2022. Biden stated that "for
totally illegitimate reasons, Russia is treating Paul's case differently than Brittney's".[2] Whelan said
that he was "greatly disappointed that more has not been done to secure my release". Speaking to
CNN by phone from the remote Russian penal colony where he is being held, he added that while he
was pleased that Griner had been freed, "I don't understand why I'm still sitting here".[60] The
Russian position was that Whelan was an agent and so required an exchange of comparable value
such as assassin Vadim Krasikov. Griner and Bout were just considered criminals and so were of
lesser value in their view.[4]
Prisoner exchange
Negotiations
In May 2022, a Forbes article claimed the Biden administration had offered Bout in exchange for the
release of Brittney Griner.[61] In June 2020, a Reuters article highlighted that following the charging
of U.S. Marine Corps veteran Paul Whelan, Moscow was exploring the possibility of a prisoner swap
exchanging Whelan for Bout and a pilot named Konstantin Yaroshenko.[62] Yaroshenko was released
in exchange for U.S. Marine Corps veteran Trevor Reed in April 2022.[63]
In July 2022, the proposal got further support from President Joe Biden.[64] On July 27, 2022, Biden
approved a possible trade for Griner and Whelan in exchange for Bout.[65] The possibility of an
exchange was further complicated when the Russians demanded the inclusion of convicted assassin
Vadim Krasikov,[66] who is serving a life term for an assassination in Germany, in the
negotiations.[67]
Also in July 2022, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called his Russian counterpart Sergey
Lavrov for the first time since the start of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, to whom he made an
offer from the U.S. to secure the release of Griner and Whelan. According to the Tagesschau, it was
unlikely that Krasikov would be transferred back to Russia.[68] On July 27, Blinken said that the
United States had made a "substantial offer" to Russia to release Griner and Whelan, but declined to
say what the United States was offering.[22] On the same day, CNN reported that the U.S. had offered
to exchange Bout for both Griner and Whelan.[69][70]
Release
Bout was released back to Russia on December 8, 2022, after spending a total of fourteen years and
nine months in custody, including 3,823 days at the United States Penitentiary, Marion in the
southern Illinois city of Marion, Illinois. Once confirmation came that the prisoner exchange excluded
Whelan, President Biden said, "While we have not yet succeeded in securing Paul's release, we have
not given up; we will not give up".[2][71] Another American detained in Russia, Marc Fogel, was also
not released in the swap.[72] However, Sarah Krivanek, an American detained for a domestic violence
dispute, was deported from Russia on the same day of Griner's release.[5]
The BBC and Khaleej Times reported that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and United
Arab Emirates President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan had claimed to have "played a leading role in
mediation efforts", but that "the White House denied any mediation had been involved".[1][73] The
exchange itself occurred at Al Bateen Executive Airport in Abu Dhabi, with Russian media playing
video of the swap showing the prisoners passing within a few feet of each other during the
exchange.[74] In an interview with Maria Butina shortly thereafter, Bout said that he spoke to Griner,
wishing her luck, and that he felt that she was "positively inclined" towards him in their brief
encounter.[75]
Following the exchange, Griner was flown to San Antonio, Texas, for an evaluation of her health at
Brooke Army Medical Center.[76]
Reactions
Republicans criticized the prisoner exchange. Donald Trump, whose term as president overlapped
with the first two years of Paul Whelan's captivity in Russia, called the swap for Griner "stupid" and
an "unpatriotic embarrassment for the USA".[77] Michael McCaul, the Republican ranking member of
the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, said that the trade would "only embolden
Vladimir Putin to continue his evil practice of taking innocent Americans hostage for use as political
pawns".[78]
Historian David Silbey stated "There's that underlying sense that this is part of the Democrats'
focusing on someone who is sympathetic to them and leaving a Marine behind," despite Russia's
refusal to include Paul Whelan in the exchange. He further stated "It fits nicely in the narrative that a
lot of the right is telling America, about who gets the privilege in Biden's America".[79] Whelan's
family stated that they supported the exchange.[80]
Some critical comments made reference to Griner's homosexuality, gender non-conformity, and past
views on support for U.S. national anthem protests. Dani Gilbert, a hostage taking and recovery
expert and a Rosenwald Fellow in US Foreign Policy and International Security at the Dartmouth
College John Sloan Dickey Center for International Understanding, characterized these critics as
expressing the viewpoint, "If you hate the United States so much, how does it feel now?" Gilbert cited
the perspective of some critics that Griner may have been less deserving of assistance than other
prisoners held in Russia as contributing to some of the opposition to resolving Griner's case. Gilbert
characterized certain reactions as being examples of the missing white woman syndrome. "A white
girl or a white woman who is taken captive or arrested or something like that elicits tons of sympathy
from the American public in a way that women and girls of color do not," Gilbert said. "And then there
are other demographic characteristics, including the fact that she is openly gay, that she is gender
nonconforming, not traditionally feminine — all of these work against public sympathy for someone
in her position," Gilbert added.[81]
Notes
a. Under Russian law, Griner's guilty plea was only an admission of guilt, and did not end her trial;
the court still had to prove there was sufficient evidence she committed the crime independent of
her guilty plea.[51]
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12/12/22, 11:48 PM Viktor Bout–Brittney Griner prisoner exchange - Wikipedia

Viktor Bout–Brittney Griner prisoner

U.S. criminal charges, arrest in Thailand, and extradition to U.S.

Bout was arrested in Bangkok, Thailand on March 6, 2008, after

U.S. prosecution and conviction

Sentencing and imprisonment

Russian prosecution and conviction

In a closed-door hearing on June 27, a court in Khimki scheduled

Sentencing and imprisonment

Discussion of Paul Whelan and Marc Fogel

Paul Whelan was arrested in 2018 for espionage in Moscow, and

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Viktor_Bout–

This page was last edited on 12 December 2022, at 15:13 (UTC).

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