American detained by Moscow asks Biden to swap him

Former non-commissioned officer of the Marine Corps, Paul Whelan was a security services officer for an American auto parts group when he was arrested in Moscow in December 2018, then sentenced in June 2020 to 16 years in prison .

In an interview with CNN from Mordovia prison where he is being held, an 8-hour drive from Moscow, he claims to be a victim of “hostage diplomacy“.

“Kidnapping of a U.S. Citizen is Not Acceptable Anywhere in the World“, he says.”It’s not with me that Russia has a problem, it’s with the United States and the United States must resolve this matter of hostage diplomacy and settle it as soon as possible.“.

–

Limited offer. 2 months for 1 € without commitment

–

“I therefore ask President Biden to actively discuss and resolve this issue with his Russian interlocutors.“, adds Mr. Whelan, noting that”it’s up to governments to decide on an exchange or some other solution.”

“What I hope is that it will be quick“, he continues, while Messrs. Biden and Poutine are to meet on June 16 in Geneva, in a period of very sharp tensions between the two rival powers.

The White House has let it be known that the two will discuss a wide range of issues with and that they will seek to have more relations with Moscow. “predictable and stable“.

According to Paul Whelan’s twin brother David, Moscow would like to exchange his brother for a notorious arms dealer imprisoned in the United States, Viktor Bout, and a private pilot, detained in the United States on drug trafficking charges, Konstantin Yaroshenko.

Another name had been mentioned by David Whelan: that of Bogdana Ossipova, sentenced in 2019 to prison in Kansas for kidnapping, after having sent to Russia the children she had had with her American ex-husband.

The United States could also request the return of another American detainee to Russia: Trevor Reed, sentenced in July 2020 to 9 years in prison for having attacked a drunken Russian policeman.