How the Brittney Griner prisoner swap deal with Russia was done

This is simply a important infinitesimal for President Joe Biden, who's been nether nationalist unit to bring Brittney Griner home, and for Griner's woman Cherelle, who's been campaigning tirelessly to marque it happen.

The alleviation and joyousness was evident arsenic they stood adjacent to each different astatine the White House.

"She is safe. She is connected a plane. She is connected her mode home," Biden declared successful an code to the nation, calling her ordeal "months of hell".

A beaming Cherelle told journalists she was "overwhelmed with emotions" and was "going to grin close now".

It took much than 9 months to get to this point. Her lawsuit tells america a batch astir America's attack to hostage diplomacy - and the limits of that strategy.

Griner was arrested astatine a Moscow airdrome successful February connected drugs charges erstwhile vape cartridges containing a tiny quantity of cannabis lipid were recovered successful her luggage - conscionable days earlier Russia invaded Ukraine. She pleaded blameworthy but said it was an honorable mistake.

The Biden medication said she'd been wrongfully detained and swung into action. It has made the merchandise of US hostages a precedence and created a peculiar envoy for this purpose. But Griner's lawsuit was shadowed by added layers of complexity and unit - not slightest that negotiations took spot against the backdrop of a warfare successful which the US is arming Ukraine.

Still, the medication successful April was capable to triumph the merchandise of a marine imprisoned successful Russia, Trevor Reed. It exchanged him for a Russian aviator sentenced to cocaine trafficking charges successful the US, demonstrating that the 2 countries could support unfastened a transmission abstracted from their geopolitical tensions.

This, unneurotic with the publicity surrounding Griner's detention, galvanised the families of different detainees who banded unneurotic to lobby for much enactment from the White House.

In July, Griner sent a handwritten missive to Biden saying she was acrophobic she'd beryllium detained indefinitely and pleading with him not to hide her.

Just days later, Secretary of State Antony Blinken publically expressed vexation that Russian counterparts were refusing to prosecute with what helium called a "substantial offer". That was a highly antithetic determination successful the discreet satellite of hostage diplomacy and a model into what Biden called "painstaking negotiations".

It became wide the Russians wanted a captive swap for Viktor Bout - a notorious arms trader who was serving a 25 twelvemonth condemnation successful US prison. In Russia helium is referred to simply arsenic a businessman, known to person carried retired risky aviation trips to unsafe places. It's not not wide whether helium had connections to Russian quality but some Russian and US experts hold that helium indispensable person known rather a lot, which is wherefore the Kremlin wanted him back.

It was a large inquire and the medication negotiated hard to see a 2nd American detainee, a erstwhile marine, Paul Whelan. He has been convicted of espionage and is serving a 16-year situation sentence.

Despite Blinken's nationalist connection successful July, US officials said the talks were stonewalled for months; Griner received a harsh 9 twelvemonth situation condemnation - mislaid an entreaty - and past period was sent to a distant penal colony.

Things looked acheronian for the hoops subordinate - until today's abrupt announcement.

A US authoritative said the statement came unneurotic successful the past 48 hours; the sticking constituent appears to person been the two-for-one deal. The authoritative said the medication was told it could either bring Griner location - oregon no-one.

Biden made the pugnacious determination to spell up and Griner and Bout are reported to person passed each different connected the tarmac astatine the Abu Dhabi airdrome wherever the speech took place.

Amid the celebrations astatine the White House, Biden acknowledged the woody had travel up abbreviated and vowed to proceed negotiations for Whelan's release.

It was a reminder that determination are different Americans who've been detained for overmuch longer than 9 months who don't person personage presumption to assistance propel their case.

It was besides a reminder that the US had to wage a precocious price.

"The different broadside ever gets a beardown vote," US Hostage envoy Roger Carstens precocious said. In this lawsuit the US traded a convicted arms trader known arsenic the "merchant of death" for a sports prima caught with a fewer grams of cannabis oil.

That the commercialized is the 2nd this twelvemonth nevertheless indicates that the Russians and Americans bash support up shadowy contacts adjacent though authoritative relations are frozen.