Champion’s verdict. Russia is preparing an exchange with the United States

Convicted basketball player Greiner

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The United States can exchange basketball player Brittney Griner and ex-Marine Paul Whelan for a Russian convicted in the States, Viktor Bout.

In Russia, Brittney Griner, an Olympic champion and a basketball player of the US national team, was sentenced to 9 years in prison. An American woman was detained in February at Sheremetyevo Airport after finding hash oil for vaping in her bag. Greiner can now be traded. When relations between the Russian Federation and the United States escalated to the limit due to Russian aggression against Ukraine, only the fate of Greiner forced US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to negotiate with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

Greiner case

Greiner is a two-time Olympic champion, two-time world champion, and also a women’s NBA champion. In the USA, she played for the Phoenix Mercury team, and between seasons she went to play in the Russian Premier League for the Yekaterinburg club UMMC.

In February of this year, Greiner was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport when, during a search, hash oil for vaping was found in her bag. A case was opened against the athlete for possession and smuggling of drugs in a significant amount.

The trial of the basketball player began in the Khimki court on July 1. Greiner’s lawyer in court stated that the athlete did not use marijuana for recreational, but for medical purposes, and emphasized that she had a prescription for medical marijuana, which is legal in many US states.

A drug expert summoned by the defense also testified in court that medical marijuana is widely used as a pain reliever among elite athletes.

Griner herself said that she did not intend to violate Russian law, and she accidentally put the hash oil cartridges in her bag because she was in a hurry and was nervous when packing.

Cannabis oil, according to Greiner, she was prescribed by a doctor for pain and inflammation, as she suffered many injuries during her career, including her spine, knee and ankle.

The athlete also emphasized that she did not use marijuana during the playing season, as this could lead to disqualification for both her and the entire team.

Exchange

Washington said last week that it had made a “substantial offer” to Moscow to exchange Griner and ex-Marine Paul Whelan, convicted in Russia, but did not specify for whom.

According to media reports, the administration of President Joe Biden came up with an offer to exchange Whelan and Griner for Russian Viktor Bout, who was sentenced in the United States to 25 years in an arms trafficking case.

The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed that negotiations on the exchange of prisoners between Russia and the United States are underway, but there has not yet been a concrete decision on the exchange of Bout for Greiner and Whelan.

Former US Marine Whelan was sentenced to 16 years in prison on charges of espionage in the summer of 2020. Whelan pleaded not guilty and called the process political.

Former Soviet military Viktor Bout was convicted in the United States in 2011. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison on charges of arms dealing.

In April 2022, an exchange of convicts took place between Russia and the United States – Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, who was sentenced in the United States to 20 years on charges of drug smuggling, was exchanged for American Trevor Reed, who received nine years in prison in Russia for a fight with policemen.

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