Russia for the first time expressed guarded optimism about talks with the U.S. on a prisoner exchange involving WNBA star Brittney Griner and another jailed American.
“‘Quiet diplomacy’ is continuing, and it should bear fruit, if of course, Washington strictly follows it without slipping into propaganda,” Alexander Darchiyev, head of the North American department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said in an interview with the state Tass news service published on Saturday.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier this month they’re willing to pursue the talks a day after a Moscow court sentenced Griner to nine years in prison on drug charges. President Joe Biden called Griner’s punishment “unacceptable” and said the White House would work tirelessly in pursuit of her release.
