On Thursday morning, President Joe Biden confirmed the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner from Russia. Griner was exchanged for international arms dealer Viktor Bout in a swap that took place in the United Arab Emirates and is on the way back to the U.S. The deal did not include Paul Whelan, a 52-year-old former Marine who was arrested in Russia in 2018 on accusations of espionage and sentenced to 16 years in prison.
The U.S. had reportedly discussed bringing home both Griner and Whelan in exchange for Bout, a deal that Biden says Russia was unwilling to make. After Griner’s release, Whelan’s family released a statement, both praising the move to bring Griner home and stating that Whelan’s continued imprisonment is “a catastrophe for Paul.”
“I am so glad that Brittney Griner is on her way home,” David Whelan, Paul’s twin brother, said in a statement Thursday via ABC’s Jay O’Brien. “As the family member of a Russian hostage, I can literally only imagine the joy she will have, being reunited with her loved ones, and in time for the holidays. There is no greater success than for a wrongful detainee to be free and for them to go home. The Biden Administration made the right decision to bring Ms. Griner home, and to make the deal that was possible, rather than waiting for one that wasn’t going to happen.”
Whelan said that the Biden administration told the family in advance that Paul would be left behind, a change from April when another former Marine, Trevor Reed, was freed from Russia.
“That early warning meant that our family has been able to mentally prepare for what is now a public disappointment for us. And a catastrophe for Paul,” David Whelan continued.
During a brief press conference shortly after news of Griner’s release, Biden and Cherelle Griner, Brittney’s wife, both spoke about Whelan.
“We never forgot about Brittney. We’ve not forgotten about Paul Whelan, who has been unjustly detained in Russia for years,” Biden said. “This was not a choice of which American to bring home. We brought home Trevor Reed when we had a chance earlier this year. Sadly, for totally illegitimate reasons, Russia is treating Paul’s case differently than Brittney’s, and while we have not yet succeeded in securing Paul’s release, we will not give up. We will never give up.”
“Today my family is whole, but as you all are aware, there’s so many other families who are not whole,” Cherelle Griner said. “BG’s not here to say this, but I will gladly speak on her behalf and say that BG and I will remain committed to the work of getting every American home, including Paul, whose family is in our hearts today as we celebrate BG being home, we do understand there are still people out here who are enduring what I endured the last nine months of missing, tremendously, their loved ones.”
