Russia says no deal "yet" on Brittney Griner, Paul Whelan prisoner swap
CBSN
Russian officials said Thursday that negotiations had been taking place for an unspecified possible prisoner swap between the United States and Russia, but that a deal had not yet been reached. The statement followed questions over a CNN report of a U.S. offer to exchange American citizens detained in Russia, WNBA star Brittney Griner and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, who is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence in the United States.
When asked about the report, Russia's foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said, "The issue of the mutual exchange of Russian and American citizens in places of detention on the territory of the two countries was once discussed by the presidents of Russia and the United States. They gave instructions to the relevant authorized structures to carry out negotiations… A concrete result has not yet been achieved."
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, when asked about the potential swap, said Thursday that he didn't discuss ongoing negotiations, but that "so far, there are no agreements in this area."
