© TASS
United Arab Emirates: American basketball player Griner returns to US
WASHINGTON (AP) — Russia has freed WNBA star Brittney Griner in a dramatic high-level prisoner exchange, with the U.S. releasing notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
The swap comes at a time of heightened tensions over Ukraine and it achieved a top goal for President Joe Biden. But it also carried a heavy price, with American Paul Whelan still detained in Russia on espionage charges that his family and the U.S. government says baseless.
Biden says Griner is “safe, she’s on a plane, she’s on her way home.” He spoke from the White House, where he was accompanied by Griner’s wife, Cherelle, and administration officials.
Griner’s monthslong imprisonment on drug charges brought unprecedented attention to the population of wrongful detainees.
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