UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg in October helped give a renewed push to the negotiations between the U.S. and Russia that eventually led to the release of basketball star Brittney Griner, a source with direct knowledge of the issue told Axios.
The big picture: The UAE's efforts to facilitate Griner’s release were part of a wider strategy by the Emiratis to use its relations with the U.S. and Russia to help solve specific issues related to the war in Ukraine, the source said.
