“US asks allies for Russian spies to trade for detained American citizens – CNN report”

To bring two American citizens back to the United States, the administration of Joe Biden asks allied countries if they currently hold Russian spies, who could be used as bargaining chips with Moscow, reports CNN.

Do you have Russian spies? If so, do not hesitate to contact the US government. Selon CNN, the announcement is very serious. The United States is currently making the rounds of its allies to find a bargaining chip with Moscow in order to bring back to American soil Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, detained in Russia.

But in its prisons, the United States currently does not have any spies whose “value” would motivate the Russian authorities to accept a trade, American military officials tell CNN.

Washington is therefore turning to its allies. The White House is also considering the possibility of easing the sanctions, senior Biden administration officials told the American media.

An exchange at the end of 2022

At the end of 2022, an exchange worthy of Office of Legends had taken place between Washington and Moscow for the release of Brittney Griner. The basketball player had been exchanged in Abu Dhabi, against the Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

video-id="6316872624112" layout="responsive" width="720" height="405" autoplay=""/>

Nicknamed the “merchant of death”, Viktor Bout was arrested in Thailand in 2008 and was serving a 25-year prison sentence in the United States. His journey was one of the inspirations of the film Lord of War, in which Nicolas Cage plays a cynical arms dealer.

The United States would no longer have a Russian prisoner “of this caliber” at its disposal to release Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan.

The first is a journalist who worked in Russia for the Wall Street Journal and was arrested in March 2023 for “espionage.” A charge that the 31-year-old reporter denies.

Paul Whelan, 53, is also accused of “espionage”. Arrested in 2019 in Moscow, he is the director of international security for the BorgWarner group, an automotive parts manufacturer headquartered near Detroit, USA.