Prisoner Swap With Griner: How Russia Celebrates But’s Return

Status: 09.12.2022 11:30 a.m

Russia’s media are celebrating the exchange of arms dealer But for US basketball player Griner – and the fact that no more Americans were exchanged. But is presented as an innocent victim of US justice.

By Martha Wilczynski, ARD Studio Moscow

His arrival is celebrated on Russian state television like a hero’s homecoming. At 12:22 a.m., Viktor Bout got off the plane at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport. His family and the cameras are already waiting.

“The first happy hug after so many years,” the live reporter comments on the welcoming scene between But, his mother and his wife.

Then he asked the 55-year-old how he found out that he was going home after more than twelve years in US custody. They came to him “in the middle of the night,” replies But, and told him to get ready – he didn’t receive any more information.

US basketball player released from Russian camp in prisoner swap

Gudrun Engel, ARD Washington, daily news at 8:00 p.m., December 8th, 2022

Handover in Abu Dhabi

On Thursday afternoon, the arms dealer, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison in the United States, was exchanged at Abu Dhabi airport for basketball player Brittney Griner, who has been in prison in Russia since February. She was sentenced to nine years in prison for drug possession.

She, too, only found out on board her plane that she was being taken home to the USA. She was asked if she knew where she was flying to – no, Griner answered, only to be told that she was going home now, to the USA.

On the way to Moscow: Russian TV shows But boarding a plane that is supposed to take him back to Russia.

Image: picture alliance/dpa/RU-24 Russian television via AP

Brittney Griner was overjoyed when she found out she was being flown back to the United States.

Image: dpa

long forward

Moscow and Washington had long struggled over this exchange, and it was not the first time that Russia had tried to free Bout, who was known internationally as the “dealer of death,” in this way.

“For 13 years, our state fought for the release of Viktor Anatolivich,” said Russian ombudswoman Tatyana Moskalkov. The Foreign Ministry, special services and President Vladimir Putin have repeatedly raised “the question of the illegal, unfounded and unfair charges and the subsequent conviction”.

Whelan remains in custody

The USA, for its part, had tried to get another American released in this exchange in addition to basketball player Griner – Paul Whelan, who has been in Russian custody for alleged espionage for four years.

In the end, the exchange was carried out “in a 1:1 format,” says But’s lawyer Alexei Tarasov – “because it should actually be of equal value. When we exchange someone, we exchange one for one, not one for two. ” In addition, But is innocent, all the allegations against him are fabricated, and his conviction by a US court at the time was politically motivated.

His hopes for an exchange were not fulfilled: Paul Whelan remains in Russian custody.

Image: REUTERS

allegations against the US judiciary

That was also the tenor of the entire reporting last night on Russian state television. There was no evidence that the 55-year-old was said to have illegally sold weapons to rebel groups and international terrorist organizations.

When the reporter asked what he was going to do next, But didn’t want to answer that night. But his lawyer said he didn’t think But would want to go back to the United States – “not even as a tourist. I think that’s the end of it.”

In the morning, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also announced that the successful exchange of Buts for Griner did not allow any conclusions to be drawn that Russia and the USA would now be moving towards each other. According to Putin’s spokesman, relations remained in a “sad state”.

Exchange Griner for But – A success for Moscow

Martha Wilczynski, ARD Moscow, 9.12.2022 08:46 a.m

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