A Russian court has begun hearing the appeal of American basketball player Brittney Griner, who was sentenced to nine years in jail for drug possession.
The WNBA star was convicted on August 4 after police said they found vaporizer canisters containing cannabis oil in her luggage at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport.
Biden to meet families of Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan
Her lawyer, Maria Blagovolina, has argued that the sentence of nine years is too much, but the Russian authorities have countered that it is “fair”.
Griner herself has been participating in the session held at the Moscow Regional Court via video call from a penal colony on the outskirts of the Russian capital, where she is being held.
Griner‘s arrest in February came at a time of heightened tension between Moscow and Washington, just days before Russia sent troops to Ukraine. At the time, Griner was returning to Russia, where she played during the US league’s off-season.
The USA’s attempts to bring Brittney Griner home
Prior to her conviction, the US State Department stated that Griner had been “unjustly detained,” a charge Russia has strongly rejected.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been working hard to try and arrange a prisoner swap that would see Griner come back to the USA along with Paul Whelan, an American who is serving a 16-year sentence in Russia for espionage.
Blinken gave no further details, but The Associated Press and other news agencies reported that Washington offered to swap Griner and Whelan for Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer serving a 25-year sentence in the United States and nicknamed ‘The Merchant of Death’.
The White House said it has not yet received a productive response from Russia to the offer.
Russian diplomats have refused to comment on the US proposal and urged Washington to discuss the matter in confidential talks, avoiding public statements.
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