Name: White House: Russia Would Not Release Ex-Marine Paul Whelan in Prisoner Swap
Uploaded: 2025-01-04T21:11:08.000Z
Description: White House spokesman John Kirby said the Russian government would not have agreed to release former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan in a prisoner swap involving Russian nationals after Russia released WNBA star Brittney Griner in exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout.

NTD Newsroom comprises teams of reporters, editors, and producers assigned to cover breaking news and other stories.


NTD Newsroom

NTD Plus

News

News you can trust from the U.S. and around the world. Critical information and insight. We cover the stories that others don’t. NTD News Today airs Monday–Friday at 11 a.m. ET.

NTD News Today

Pentagon Scraps Deployment of 4,000 Troops to Poland

9/11 Memorial and Museum Adds 7th Moment of Silence

AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon Launch Joint Venture to Tackle Dead Zones

Stefania Cox is an NTD News anchor and national correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City. Stefania anchors "NTD Newsroom," and co-anchors "NTD News Today" weekdays at 10:00 am ET.

Stefania Cox

Trump Committed to US Defense, Prosperity, Amid China Talks: Expert

Jerome Powell Ends Tenure as Fed Chair

US Government Sues Chick-fil-A Over Religious Rights

Melina Wisecup is NTD's congressional correspondent based in Washington, covering Capitol Hill and campaign politics.

Melina Wisecup

California Gubernatorial Candidates Make Closing Pitches to Voters 

Jason Blair is a national correspondent for NTD News based in California. 

Jason Blair

Federal Judge Partly Blocks Texas Immigration Law

Trump Announces National Garden of American Heroes Plans

Top Officer: Navy Funding Could Lapse by July

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 15)

Paul Greaney is an NTD news anchor and producer. Since joining the company in 2018, he has anchored the station’s flagship Evening News broadcast, launched the NTD Business show, and produced documentary reports on pointed issues. 

The highlight of Paul’s time in the field was his coverage of the Hong Kong pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Paul Greaney

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 14)

Kevin Hogan is an NTD News data reporter and national correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City. Kevin covers breaking news, as well as U.S. and global current events. He conveys the news through data visualizations and investigates pressing issues.

Kevin Hogan

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 13)

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 12)

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 11)

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 8)

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 7)

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 6)

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 5)

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (May 4)

Fast, compelling, first-hand news from China. China in Focus airs Monday–Friday at 8 p.m. ET.

China in Focus

China Sends Warships to Pacific Drill as Tensions With Japan Rise

Reuters is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages.

Reuters

We present news that is truthful and based on facts, outside of the political fog. Instead of focusing on the negative things happening around us, our mission is to give our viewers a good morning with empathetic and uplifting stories. Our aim is to provide an antidote to negativity by shining a light on the best side of people. We speak to inspiring people who positively impact communities, pursue topics that represent our common human values, and will never miss an opportunity to bring you heartwarming stories.

NTD Good Morning

2 US Embassy Personnel Assigned to Cartel Case Killed in Car Accident

The Associated Press is an American not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. 

The Associated Press

US News

Gunman Kills 8 Children, Including 7 of His Own, in Louisiana Mass Shooting

Flora Hua is a reporter based at NTD's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers China news, U.S.-China relations, and human rights issues. Flora primarily contributes to NTD's "China in Focus."  

Flora Hua

Trump: Seized Iranian Ship May Have ‘A Gift From China’

Joseph Lord is a congressional reporter for The Epoch Times.


Joseph Lord

Aldgra Fredly is a freelance writer covering U.S. and Asia Pacific news for The Epoch Times.

Aldgra Fredly

Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani Hospitalized in Critical Condition: Spokesman

Wildfires Across Georgia and Florida Have Destroyed Nearly 50 Homes and Are Forcing Evacuations

US Warns of China Hacks via Routers, Smart Devices

Juliet Song is an international correspondent exclusively covering China news for NTD. She primarily contributes to NTD's "China in Focus," covering U.S.-China relations, the Chinese regime's human rights abuses, and domestic unrest inside China.

Juliet Song

2 Americans Among Suspected Communist Rebels Killed in Clashes With Troops, Philippine Officials Say

Ryan Morgan is a reporter for The Epoch Times focusing on military and foreign affairs. He was previously a news writer for NTD. 


Ryan Morgan

Mari Otsu is NTD's White House correspondent based in Washington. 

Mari Otsu

World News

Middle East

Iran

3 US Warships Fend Off Iranian Attacks, Trump Says Ceasefire Still Holds

Health News

3 Dead in Suspected Hantavirus Outbreak on Cruise Ship in Atlantic Ocean: WHO

White House spokesman John Kirby said the Russian government would not have agreed to release former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan in a prisoner swap involving Russian nationals after Russia released WNBA star Brittney Griner in exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout.

On Sunday morning, Kirby said that trading Whelan was “never a choice posed by the Russians” and that the Biden administration could only exchange Griner for Bout under the agreement. Whelan was detained in 2018 and was given a 16-year prison term.

“They treat Paul differently because of these sham espionage charges,” Kirby told Fox News on Sunday. “He is put in this special category by the Russians.”

Last week, Whelan <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/dont-understand-us-marine-vet-in-russian-prison-greatly-disappointed-after-britney-griner-swap_4912583.html">told</a> CNN via phone that he was “greatly disappointed” and said that more should be done to secure his release. He said he was pleased that Griner, who was jailed on drug possession charges, was sent back to the United States.

“I was arrested for a crime that never occurred,” he told the outlet Thursday. “I don’t understand why I’m still sitting here.”

But Kirby disputed those claims and said that “until the very end we were making efforts to try to get both of them out but there was no way to get there.”

“It was either make this deal now and at least get one of them home and keep up the efforts to get Paul home,” Kirby said.

Whelan’s sister, Elizabeth, told ABC News that his family expected that Griner could return first due to the nature of their respective cases. “We’ve always known that the Russians were treating Paul separately, and therefore, we always knew that there was a chance that this would happen, that would Brittney would be released first,” she said.

In this image made from video, WNBA star Brittney Griner sits in the plane as she flies to Abu Dhabi to be exchanged for Russian citizen Viktor Bout, in Russia, on Dec. 9, 2022. (Russian Federal Security Service via AP)

To secure Griner’s release, the United States agreed to release Bout, who was serving a 25-year sentence on charges that he conspired to sell tens of millions of dollars in weapons that U.S. officials said were to be used against Americans. Biden issued an executive grant of clemency to free the arms dealer from a federal prison in Illinois to enable the prisoner swap.
<h2>‘Disturbing’</h2>
Bout’s release in exchange for Griner was panned by Republicans and even some high-ranking Democrats. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, indicated that he wasn’t happy with the move.

“The Russians and other regimes that take American citizens hostage cannot pretend that there is equivalence between the Brittney Griners of the world and people like Viktor Bout, the so-called ‘Merchant of Death,'” Menendez statement. “Nothing could be further from the truth, and we cannot ignore that releasing Bout back into the world is a deeply disturbing decision.”
<figure id="attachment_4911489" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 600px"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">

Former Soviet military officer and arms trafficking suspect Viktor Bout (C) deplanes after arriving at Westchester County Airport in White Plains, N.Y., on Nov. 16, 2010. (U.S. Department of Justice via Getty Images)

</figcaption></figure>
Menendez said that it’s time for “deep reflection” about American hostage situations. “We must try do better at encouraging American citizens against traveling to places like Russia where they are primary targets for this type of unlawful detention,” he said.

An unnamed U.S. official last week <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2022/12/08/background-press-call-on-the-release-of-brittney-griner/">said</a> that regarding getting Whelan home, “we will never relent until we bring Paul home, too, along with other Americans held hostage and wrongfully detained globally.”

Griner was arrested in February before she pleaded guilty in July to possessing cannabis oil but said she had no criminal intent. She was sentenced to nine years in prison in August.

Whelan has been held in Russia since December 2018, although the U.S. government also classified him as wrongfully detained. He was sentenced in 2020 to 16 years in prison.

Bout received a 25-year prison term in 2012 after he was convicted of selling arms to Colombian rebels. Moscow has been calling for his release since then, saying the conviction was politically motivated.

In an RT interview released over the weekend, Bout stated that he wished Griner luck as the two passed each other during the exchange in Abu Dhabi last week.

“I wished her good luck, she even extended her hand,” Bout <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=IsT0c2LaWvI">told</a> the state-run network on Saturday. “Our tradition is to wish everyone good luck and happiness.”

Asked if Griner tried to communicate with him, he said, “Yes, she did, and I felt she was very positive towards me.”

<em>The Associated Press contributed to this report.</em>

<em>From <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/white-house-russia-would-not-release-ex-marine-paul-whelan-in-prisoner-swap_4917002.html">The Epoch Times</a></em>

Videos

Politics

04_Top Stories

Latest Clips

International

Europe

Paul Whelan

Brittney Griner

Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter with 15 years experience who started as a local New York City reporter. Having joined The Epoch Times' news team in 2009, Jack was born and raised near Modesto in California's Central Valley. 

Jack Phillips

Latest and breaking news, documentaries, movies, and lifestyle content on NTD+.
 
Empower your knowledge and elevate your spirit with NTD+, your go-to destination for truthful news, insightful documentaries, and captivating lifestyle content that enriches your life.