U.S. Embassy Staff Visit Jailed Basketball Star Brittney Griner in Russia

Officials from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow visited imprisoned WNBA star Brittney Griner on Thursday, only weeks after a Russian court turned down her appeal against a nine-year sentence for drug possession.

State Department spokesman Ned Price described the visit in a tweet. He said the American representatives "saw firsthand her tenacity and perseverance despite her present circumstances."

Price added that the Biden administration continues to push for the immediate release of Griner and of Paul Whelan, who in 2020 was sentenced to 16 years in a Russian prison on espionage-related charges. Whelan and his family say those charges are bogus. Price also called for "fair treatment for every detained American."

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Griner "is doing as well as can be expected under the circumstances." She said the administration was working to resolve what she called the "current unacceptable and wrongful detentions" of Griner and Whelan.

Griner was convicted in August after police said they found vape canisters containing cannabis oil in her luggage at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport. She was arrested in February, a period of heightened tension between Moscow and Washington and just days before Russia sent troops into Ukraine. She had been traveling back to play for a Russian team during the WNBA offseason.

At her trial, Griner acknowledged that the canisters were in her bags. She testified that she had packed them inadvertently while rushing to catch her flight and had no criminal intent. Her lawyers have described the punishment as excessive.

The United States considers both Griner and Whelan to be wrongfully detained and has been trying to negotiate their release. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said over the summer that Washington had made a "substantial proposal" to Russia aimed at bringing both Americans home. People familiar with the offer have said it would have exchanged Whelan and Griner for Viktor Bout, a convicted Russian arms dealer.

There have been no outward signs of progress in the talks since then. Jean-Pierre told reporters traveling with the president to New Mexico that, "despite a lack of good faith negotiation by the Russians," the U.S. government has kept following up on its offer. She said it has also proposed other possible ways forward with Russia "through all available channels," and that the matter "continues to be a top priority."