Family of US man held in Russia lament ‘catastrophe for Paul’ after Griner swap

Paul Whelan, a corporate security executive from Michigan, has been held in Russia since 2018. Photograph: Maxim Shemetov/Reuters

The family of Paul Whelan, an American held in Russia, welcomed the release of the basketball star Brittney Griner but lamented “a disappointment for us and a catastrophe for Paul”.

“It’s clear the US government has no concessions the Russian government will take for Paul Whelan,” his brother David Whelan said.