The US Ambassador to Russia has stepped down from his post as America’s top diplomat in Moscow.
John Sullivan has been in the role for the past three years and has spanned the Donald Trump and Joe Biden administrations.
His full retirement is set to come in the Autumn but it has been sped up to that point due to a family medical issue.
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“U.S. Ambassador to the Russian Federation John J. Sullivan has concluded his tenure as U.S. envoy and departed Moscow today,” the US Embassy in Russia said in a press statement Sunday.
The effect on the Brittney Griner case
Sullivan‘s departure comes amid the widening crisis over Russia’s war in Ukraine as well as disputes over detained Americans in Russia.
Diplomatic sources in Russia confirmed in early August that negotiations between Washington and Moscow are underway over a proposed prisoner swap involving WNBA star Brittney Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout imprisoned in the U.S.
Over the past seven months of Griner‘s detention in Russia, Ambassador Sullivan complained about obstacles he and other embassy officials encountered in their efforts to visit Griner.
“For the third time in a month, Russian authorities have denied an embassy visit to detained U.S. citizen Brittney Griner,” Sullivan tweeted, calling the situation “unacceptable” and urging the Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry to provide timely consular access.
Griner was detained at a Moscow airport in February, one week before Russia invaded Ukraine, for having less than a gram of cannabis oil in her luggage.
Elizabeth Rood, the deputy chief of mission to Russia, will be the top U.S. diplomat in Moscow until a successor nominated by President Biden replaces Sullivan.
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