U.S. tamps down Russia's update on Griner talks

A perchance promising Russian connection astir negotiations to bring Brittney Griner location was met with speedy dismissal from the U.S. Department of State connected Friday.

Russian lawman overseas curate Sergei Ryabkov was quoted by Russian media aboriginal successful the time saying determination was caller "activity" successful talks that could spot convicted arms trader Viktor Bout, who is presently serving 25 years successful a U.S. prison, returned to Russia.

"We haven't recovered communal crushed yet, but, undoubtedly, Viktor Bout is among those being discussed and evidently we are hoping for a affirmative result," Ryabkov reportedly said. "The Americans are showing definite enactment and we are moving connected this done due channels."

But a State Department spokesperson fired backmost that Russia inactive has not earnestly engaged successful negotiations, nary substance what Ryabkov said.

"We are not going to remark connected the specifics of immoderate proposals different than to accidental that we person made a important connection that the Russian Federation has consistently failed to negociate successful bully faith," the connection said. "The U.S. Government has continued to travel up connected that connection and suggest alternate imaginable ways guardant with the Russian government. The Russian government's nonaccomplishment to earnestly negociate connected these issues successful the established channel, oregon immoderate different transmission for that substance runs antagonistic to its nationalist statements."

U.S. officials had said they hoped their Russian counterparts would prosecute successful bully religion aft the Nov. 8 midterm elections, but Friday's connection made it wide that specified a displacement hasn't happened, arsenic slightest successful the eyes of the U.S. government.

Sources adjacent to Griner said Friday that her household remained "optimistic" and assured that the Biden medication was doing each it could to get her home. But they are besides trying not to overreact to the ups and downs of a process that they cognize could spell connected for months oregon years.

Friday's authoritative statements came aft Griner's caller transportation to a Russian penal colony, a determination confirmed by her attorneys but inactive not officially acknowledged by the Russian government. Griner's attorneys met with her successful idiosyncratic Monday, but U.S. embassy officials person not been capable to sojourn her yet astatine the IK-2 women's situation astir 2 hours extracurricular of Moscow.

"While we are gladsome her ineligible squad was capable to sojourn her, the information is that the Russian Federation has inactive failed to supply immoderate authoritative notification of specified a move," a State Department spokesperson said successful a statement. "We proceed to telephone connected Russia to unrecorded up to their ineligible obligations to supply the United States timely consular entree to Ms. Griner truthful we tin supply captious consular assistance passim her detention. That's hard to bash erstwhile we haven't been notified wherever she is."

One of Griner's attorneys, Maria Blagovolina, said precocious that Russian officials typically notify families and attorneys astir a prisoner's determination by mail, which tin instrumentality astir 2 weeks during mean circumstances.

Griner has not yet been successful interaction with her family, a root said, and astir apt won't beryllium capable to until she has cleared a modular "quarantine" play astatine her caller location.