Brittney Griner's family expresses gratitude to Biden, offers prayers for Paul Whelan's return
From CNN's Abby Phillip
Brittney Griner’s family expressed gratitude to President Joe Biden and his administration “for the tireless work they did to bring Brittney home” in a statement released Thursday night.
The statement added:
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Biden administration weighing some other kind of offer to secure Whelan's return, official says
From CNN's Kylie Atwood and Jennifer Hansler
The Biden administration has ideas about “new forms of offers” it is going to try with the Russians in an effort to secure American Paul Whelan’s release, a senior administration official said.
The official said there is a recognition that the US needs to make available “something more, something different” from what it has offered thus far.
This position comes as Whelan told CNN the administration would have to look at what it has “that these people want, and hopefully give it to them, or I’ll be here for a long time.”
Russia views Whelan as a spy, the administration official explained, which means it puts him in a different category. The official didn’t rule out the US offering a Russian spy in US custody.
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Former governor Bill Richardson says Biden made right decision on Griner swap
From CNN's Mary Kay Mallonee
Former Gov. Bill Richardson, who worked to help secure the release of Brittney Griner from Russia, said President Joe Biden made the right decision on the prisoner swap.
Richardson and his namesake foundation privately work on behalf of families of American hostages and detainees being held overseas.
“We now have to concentrate on Paul Whelan,” Richardson said. “I think we have to make an effort to get him out before the end of the year.”
Richardson expressed frustration over failed efforts to bring Whelan home.
“We have tried, my foundation, for four years to get Whelan out and somehow it always falls short. We tried it during the Trump administration, early on in the Biden administration and it seems at the very end, possibly because of the espionage charge, because he’s a Marine …. he’s wrongfully detained, the Russians hold on to him at the very end, and this is what happened again, but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a possibility that we can get him out. I think we can,” he said.
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Putin defends attacks on Ukraine infrastructure targets. Here are the top headlines from today
Meantime, Russia’s war in Ukraine is far from over. Nearly 10 months after his invasion of Ukraine began, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday acknowledged that the conflict is “going to take a while.”
Here are the top headlines today from the war:
Concerns at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant: A top Ukrainian official said his government is working with the UN’s nuclear watchdog agency to create a security zone around the plant. But, Ukraine’s state-owned nuclear company Energoatom claimed Russian forces had deployed new weapons at the facility. A spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry cast doubt on the prospects for an agreement earlier this week, saying, “The station is located on Russian territory and is fully controlled by Russia.”
Explosions near a key southern port: Loud explosions and a fire were reported in the city of Berdiansk near the Sea of Azov. The city and port have been occupied by Russian forces since the early days of the conflict. Its port has previously been targeted by Ukrainian forces. The Ukrainian-appointed head of the city’s military administration confirmed the explosions, though Russian-appointed officials there denied any attack.
Fighting in Donetsk and Kharkiv regions: Russian forces are holding their lines along the border between the Kharkiv and Luhansk regions and had shelled nearly a dozen settlements in the course of the day, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said. Further south, the Donetsk front lines continue to see heavy Russian shelling in nearly 20 areas, according to the military.
Missiles hit Russian airfields: Ukraine’s army has significantly streamlined its protocol for approving unmanned aerial vehicles and other weaponry, according to the country’s defense minister. It comes days after Moscow accused Kyiv of drone strikes on air bases deep inside its territory. The defense minister explained that the previous process to approve one or two drones could take up to two years — but now, seven Ukrainian-made UAVs have been green-lit for operation over the past 30 days.
Race to repair Ukrainian energy grid: “Frost, rain with snow and strong wind” paired with continuing clashes are hindering repairs to Ukraine’s power grid, as technicians race to get energy infrastructure damaged in weeks of relentless Russian strikes back up and running, according to state energy company Ukrenergo.
Putin comments on Russian attacks: The Russian president made rare public comments specifically addressing the attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Putin, who ordered the invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, said of the war, “Yes, we are doing it. But who started it?” He listed a series of events he blames on the Ukrainians: “Who hit the Crimean bridge? Who blew up the power lines from the Kursk nuclear power plant?”
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US concluded Viktor Bout was not a security threat before Biden agreed to Griner deal, White House says
From CNN's MJ Lee
The Biden administration conducted a security assessment in the lead-up to the deal to trade Brittney Griner for Viktor Bout and determined the convicted arms dealer would not pose a threat to US security, a White House official told CNN.
One reality that the assessment took into account, the person said, is the fact that Bout has been in prison for over a decade and therefore has not been actively engaged in any recent criminal activity.
This kind of security assessment is typically made whenever the government is in negotiations to try to bring home an American who is deemed to be wrongfully detained abroad.
But, other than to say that the security assessment conducted on Bout was “thorough,” the official would not elaborate on how the US was able to be certain that the Russian arms dealer wouldn’t pose a future risk to the country.
Since news of the Griner-Bout swap became public, the administration has confronted criticism and concerns regarding what Bout may do as a free individual – and questions about the value of releasing such a notorious person.
Bout’s 25-year sentence in the US was for conspiring to kill Americans, acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles, and provide material support to a terrorist organization. Bout has maintained he is innocent.
Earlier in the day, when asked whether a risk assessment had been conducted on Bout, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters she would not offer any details about what intelligence Biden was given about Bout.
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"It's Joe Biden. Welcome, welcome home": Inside the Oval Office as Brittney Griner gained her freedom
From CNN's Phil Mattingly
In the days leading to Brittney Griner’s release, US officials grew increasingly convinced it was no longer a matter of if, but when.
That reality was the driver behind an invitation to Brittney’s wife Cherelle Griner earlier this week to come to the White House early Thursday morning, according to a senior administration official.
The invitation was to meet with national security adviser Jake Sullivan, Biden’s top national security official who had briefed Cherelle Griner several times over the course of the nearly 10 months her wife had been detained in Russia. The agenda was an update on a process that was clearly moving toward resolution.
By the time Cherelle Griner arrived at the White House, it was clear Brittney Griner was on the verge of being released. She had been moved from the penal colony where she’d been detained to Moscow. The final deal, one official acknowledged, was clearly in its end game.
As Cherelle Griner waited to meet with Sullivan, however, a change in venue signaled what was about to happen. With no explanation, Griner was led back to the Oval Office, where President Joe Biden was waiting.
Biden delivered the first official confirmation that Brittney Griner was on her way home, something he’d told aides he wanted to do himself. Shortly after, advisers delivered the official notification to Biden and Cherelle Griner: Brittany Griner was secure and in the hands of US officials.
Biden then brought Cherelle Griner to a chair set up next to his at the Resolute Desk. Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Sullivan stood nearby.
Brittany Griner was then connected to the room by speaker phone — her first call to her wife since she’d been freed.
“It’s Joe Biden. Welcome, welcome home,” Biden said when the line connected, according to the official. After a short conversation between the three, Biden showed Cherelle to the private dining room, where she was able to continue the call with her wife privately.
Less than an hour later, the two stood side by side down the hall in the Roosevelt Room.
Plane carrying arms dealer Viktor Bout has arrived in Moscow, Russian state media reports
From CNN's Radina Gigova
A plane carrying Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, according to local media, lands in Moscow on December 8.
(Tatyana Makeyeva/Reuters)
A plane carrying Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout landed in Moscow following a prisoner swap for US basketball star Brittney Griner, according to Russian state television channel Russia 24.
Bout’s wife and mother were waiting and hugged him as soon as he walked off the plane, Russia 24 footage shows.
The channel earlier released video of Bout boarding a plane, getting a quick medical check and calling his family.
Bout told a reporter in Moscow he learned that he’d be returning to his native country in the middle of the night – and that he “didn’t even get to say goodbye to anyone.”
Griner is expected to land in San Antonio, Texas, Thursday but the exact timing is unclear.
Who is Viktor Bout? Bout, nicknamed the “Merchant of Death” by his accusers, is a former Soviet military officer who was serving a 25-year sentence in the US on various charges, including conspiring to kill Americans.
You can read more about the convicted arms dealer here.
This post has been updated with comments from Bout to Russian media.
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Griner lawyer says there were positive signs in the last week concerning her possible release
Maria Blagovolina speaks to CNN's Jake Tapper about Griner's release.
(CNN)
One of Brittney Griner’s lawyers in Russia, Maria Blagovolina, said there were indications last week that something was happening in relation to her possible release.
She noted that the weeks since Griner was transferred to a new detention facility in Mordovia had been very stressful for the basketball star as she’d also caught the flu.
“This is not a holiday resort. This is jail, and the conditions there are really harsh, and that’s true. But what I can say for sure, that Brittney has not complained and was treated very well – and I think that the reason for this is mostly because of her very likable character. People like her,” Blagovolina said. “So everybody who is around her just is trying to help her, to support her.”
The lawyer added that the support Griner received from people in the US had helped her remain strong over the past nine months.
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Griner expected to land in San Antonio following release from Russian detention
From CNN's Kylie Atwood
After being released from Russian detention to US officials in Abu Dhabi, American basketball star Brittney Griner is flying back to the US and expected to land in San Antonio, Texas, a US official confirmed to CNN.
It is not clear when she is expected to land.
State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said that US officials will discuss with Griner “what she needs” when she arrives back in the US.
Trevor Reed and the seven Americans who returned from Venezuela in early October were brought to San Antonio, where they underwent a Department of Defense program known as PISA (Post Isolation Support Activities) meant to acclimate them back to normal life.
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Whelan's sister says she spoke to Biden
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
Elizabeth Whelan speaks with reporters in Washington, DC, on May 4.
(Patrick Semansky/AP)
Elizabeth Whelan, the sister of detained US citizen Paul Whelan, spoke with President Joe Biden on Thursday afternoon. She told CNN it was a “good call.” She also spoke with Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
She told CNN’s Jake Tapper that people should not be divided over WNBA star Brittney Griner’s release and that the criticism over the deal is “purposefully missing the nuance of what happens in negotiations over wrongful detainees.”
Whelan said she does not believe her brother knows the full extent of the efforts to free him, noting the family has to be careful what they tell him because they assume the Russians are listening.
Paul Whelan, in an exclusive call with CNN, said he was happy that Griner was released, but expressed disappointment in his continued Russian detention. “I don’t understand why I’m still sitting here,” he said by phone from the penal colony where he is being held in a remote part of Russia.
A senior administration official told reporters earlier that Elizabeth Whelan “was visited in person by a senior US government official to share and talk through at length the news about Brittney.”
“I would also emphasize that the president has made clear to the Whelan family that when they are ready, he is eager to personally convey his commitment to Paul’s case and his resolution to keep them informed of our efforts,” the official said.
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Donetsk and Kharkiv regions see heavy Russian attacks, according to Ukrainian military
From CNN's Tim Lister and Julia Kesaieva
The Ukrainian military said settlements in the eastern Donetsk region and northeastern Kharkiv region have come under heavy Russian fire.
“More than 20 attacks from [Russian] multiple rocket launchers [are] on the positions of our troops and settlements along the contact line,” the military said.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said Russian forces were holding their lines along the border between the Kharkiv and Luhansk regions and had shelled nearly a dozen settlements in the course of the day.
Oleh Syniehubov, head of the Kharkiv region military administration, told Ukrainian television that in northern parts of Kharkiv, towns recently taken back by Ukrainian forces near the Russian border were constantly being shelled, including in Vovchansk.
Further south, the Donetsk front lines continue to see heavy Russian shelling in nearly 20 areas, according to the military, especially around Bakhmut and Avdiivka. Battles in the region have become a war of attrition involving mortars, tank fire, artillery and explosives dropped from drones — with much of the countryside pockmarked with craters. Neither side has taken any meaningful territory in several months along that part of the front line.
The General Staff said that in the southern regions of Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk, 22 settlements had come under fire, with two attacked by Russian aircraft. And there was also Russian tank and artillery shelling of nearly 20 settlements in recently liberated parts of Kherson region on the west bank of the Dnipro River.
Here’s the latest map of control:
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Sen. Rubio says the Griner deal was a bad trade, despite relief she's coming home
From CNN's Ted Barrett
Sen. Marco Rubio speaks at a campaign rally in West Miami on October 9.
(Rebecca Blackwell/AP)
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who is the top Republican on the Senate intelligence committee, said the Biden administration cut a “bad deal” in securing Brittney Griner’s release, while also expressing relief she has been free.
Rubio warned the deal will “incentivize the taking of more Americans around the world.”
Asked by CNN if he would not have made this deal if he were president, Rubio said he hoped the deal with the Russians “would have been part of a broader arrangement that would have included every American that’s being held hostage.”
“We have to recognize, even as we’re happy in Americans coming home, it does incentivize the taking of more Americans around the world,” he said.
Rubio added that he thinks Griner will be “very grateful and have a greater appreciation for the greatness of this country and how special it is.”
Other Republican leaders also criticized the deal:
Florida congressman Mike Waltz told Fox News that he is “happy for the Griner family, but in the long-term, appeasing terrorists, appeasing dictatorships never works in the interests of the United States.”
Waltz was critical of the lack of a deal freeing Whelan.
“My heart breaks for the Whelan family,” he said. “What was his crime? Not being a celebrity? Not checking enough boxes for Hollywood? The fact that we left a US Marine behind and made this choice, and I don’t buy … President Biden saying we didn’t have a choice.”
Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso echoed that sentiment in an interview with Fox Business.
“It’s absolutely wrong to leave the Marine there,” he said, referring to Paul Whelan. “He may not be forgotten but he’s still there.”
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Russian state media shows video of Griner and Bout boarding planes
From CNN's Radina Gigova
Brittney Griner is seen boarding a plane on Thursday.
(Russia TV)
Russian state television channel Russia 24 showed video on Thursday of Brittney Griner and Viktor Bout as they were boarding their planes as part of a prisoner swap.
The video showed Griner leaving what the presenter said what was her place of detention. She then got into a van. The next clip showed Griner walking on a tarmac toward a plane, boarding the aircraft, showing her US passport and sitting down in one of the seats.
Griner was asked, “are you ready for a flight?” and she replies, “yes,” while smiling.
Part of the footage showed Bout walking onto a tarmac, boarding a plane and sitting down inside. The footage was shot in Abu Dhabi, according to Russia 24.
After Bout sat down, he got a quick medical check and called his family.
This video grab shows Brittney Griner and Viktor Bout during the exchange.
(Sputnik/AP)
Viktor Bout is seen boarded on a plane on Thursday.
(Russia TV)
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Analysis: What Viktor Bout’s return to Russia says about Vladimir Putin
From CNN's Nick Paton Walsh
Viktor Bout arrives at a criminal court in Bangkok ,Thailand, in 2010.
(Nicolas Asfouri/AFP/Getty Images)
On the surface, US basketball star Brittney Griner and Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout are accused of ludicrously different crimes. Griner was sentenced to a Russian penal colony for possession of a single gram of cannabis oil. Bout is allegedly the most prolific arms dealer of the past decades, fueling conflicts in Africa and beyond – and more specifically being convicted in a US court of plotting to kill Americans.
But the circumstances and political pressure on both sides reversed this imbalance.
Griner gained a significance to Americans, forcing the Biden administration to negotiate with the Kremlin at the worst point of US-Russian relations since at least the end of the Cold War. Bout’s outsized importance to Russia — despite coming to be known as the “Merchant of Death” — has always been the bigger puzzle.
The fact that this exchange happened during the Russian invasion and brutalizing of Ukraine says two things.
First: Moscow and Washington are able to do business even as Russian bombs kill innocent Ukrainian civilians, and the US provides arms to Ukraine that are killing Russian soldiers, and that nuclear powers can work on other thorny issues while bullets are flying. This is a good thing for everyone on the planet. It means some cool heads prevail, and basic interests win out.
Second: It also shows some weakness on the side of Putin. At a time when he is hawkishly flaunting nuclear rhetoric against the West, he is also agreeing to high profile diplomatic deal to get back a figure of outsized, complex importance to Russia’s elite, the intelligence community, and national pride. He is not someone Moscow would – to paraphrase the ugly slogan of Russia’s invasion in which hundreds of soldiers’ bodies have remained strewn on the battlefield – “leave behind.” These are the very people that Putin wants to curry favor with now.
Yes, it is a win for Putin, but one that comes at the cost of exposing his weakness and his need to keep the military elite he relies upon content.
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Viktor Bout tells relatives he is back in Russia, according to state media
From CNN's Uliana Pavlova
Viktor Bout, the US-traded Russian arms dealer, notified his wife and mother that he is in Russia during a phone call on Thursday, according to state broadcaster 24 and news agency TASS.
During the phone call, Bout reassured his relatives that he was fine. According to the broadcast, a special aircraft carrying Bout made a stop in the Russian city of Makhachkala for refueling.
How the exchange happened: The prisoner exchange was completed successfully at Abu Dhabi Airport on Thursday, the Russian foreign ministry said earlier Thursday.
The statement confirmed that Abu Dhabi received WNBA star Brittney Griner by private plane from Moscow after the Russian authorities released her, in conjunction with the reception of Bout on a private plane from Washington after the US authorities released him, in the presence of specialists from the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
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German chancellor believes risk of Russia using nuclear weapons has decreased
From CNN's Nadine Schmidt in Berlin
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks to the media in Berlin on December 1.
(Sean Gallup/Getty Images)
The risk of Russia using nuclear weapons in the war with Ukraine has lessened in response to international pressure, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a new interview.
The remarks, published Thursday by Germany’s Funke media group, were later posted by Scholz on Twitter.
He was responding to a question about whether the threat of nuclear escalation had been averted.
Moscow voiced a different tone earlier this week: On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the threat of nuclear war is increasing and stopped short of pledging that Russia would not be the first to resort to nuclear weapons in a conflict.
“As for the idea that Russia wouldn’t use such weapons first under any circumstances, then it means we wouldn’t be able to be the second to use them either – because the possibility to do so in case of an attack on our territory would be very limited,” he said.
But Putin said he viewed the Russian nuclear arsenal primarily as a deterrent, rather than a provocation.
“We have a strategy … namely, as a defense, we consider weapons of mass destruction, nuclear weapons – it is all based around the so-called retaliatory strike,” he said. “That is, when we are struck, we strike in response.”
More from the interview: Scholz was also asked if Germany supports French President Emmanuel Macron’s openness to providing security guarantees for Moscow in the case of peace negotiations. The chancellor said the priority was for Russia “to end the war immediately and withdraw its troops.”
Scholz, who spoke to the Russian president last week, added that ”we have to talk to each other despite this terrible situation. So that Putin also hears our point of view again and again.”
CNN’s Katharina Krebs contributed to this report.
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US DOJ officials expressed frustration about prisoner swap when deal narrowed to 1-for-1, sources say
From CNN's Evan Perez
After months of behind-the-scenes discussions inside the US government about efforts to secure the release of Americans held in Russia, including Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner, the outlines of a deal emerged in the past week, people briefed on the matter said.
Justice Department officials, who were always opposed to releasing Bout, expressed frustration that an earlier deal that included Whelan had been narrowed to Griner.
One US official said law enforcement officials raised strenuous objections and were told the decision had been made.
For law enforcement officials from the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration, which spent years and elaborate efforts to try to capture the convicted arms dealer, the release of Bout raised additional concerns about the precedent the deal could set.
Viktor Bout looks out from inside a detention center in Bangkok, Thailand, in 2009.
(Apichart Weerawong/AP/File)
Bout, a former Soviet military officer, was serving a 25-year prison sentence in the United States on charges of conspiring to kill Americans, acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles, and provide material support to a terrorist organization. Bout has maintained he is innocent.
The publicity surrounding Griner — including celebrities posting criticism of the Biden White House on social media for not moving more quickly to secure her release — appeared to raise the Russian price for Griner’s release, law enforcement officials say.
That adds to concerns that the deal increases the likelihood that Russia, Iran and other countries could use the arrest of Americans to try to use the publicity to gain concessions the US otherwise wouldn’t give.
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Series of explosions in Russian-held Berdiansk reported on local social channels
From CNN's Julia Kesaieva
Local social media channels in the Russian-occupied city of Berdiansk reported loud explosions and a fire there Thursday morning, though Russian-appointed officials denied any attack.
Berdiansk is a city and port close to the Sea of Azov on Ukraine’s southern coast and has been occupied by Russian forces since the early days of the conflict. Its port has previously been targeted by Ukrainian forces.
The explosions were confirmed by Viktoria Galitsyna, the Ukrainian-appointed head of the city’s military administration, and Petro Andriushchenko, an adviser to the mayor of Mariupol. Neither official is in Berdiansk.
Galitsyna said the explosions had occurred at a Russian-held airfield just north of the city. Andriushchenko said that, judging by what was being reported locally, something “very big detonates.” The sound of the explosions had been heard in nearby villages, he said.
Moscow-backed leaders reject reports: The head of the Russian-appointed administration in Berdiansk, Aleksandr Saulenko, denied the reports.
Saulenko said Ukrainian “couch officials” who had fled to Zaporizhzhia were trying to “mislead users of social networks and messengers by spreading fake messages about explosions near the airport in our wonderful and quiet city.”
“Trust only the official information of the Berdiansk (military administration), which is located in the city and has all the information first-hand,” Saulenko said.
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Biden official: Russia made clear that Bout "was never a bargaining chip" for Whelan
John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, speaks to CNN's Kate Bolduan.
(CNN)
John Kirby, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, said the Biden administration will continue to work to get detained US citizen Paul Whelan back to the US after a release was secured for Brittney Griner on Thursday.
“Viktor Bout was never a bargaining chip for Mr. Whelan, and the Russians consistently made that clear. So I think we need to make that well-known. We will work as hard today and tomorrow and the next day to get Mr. Whelan home as we have been working since he’s been in Russia wrongfully detained,” Kirby told CNN’s Kate Bolduan.
In July, CNN reported that the Biden administration offered to exchange Bout, a convicted Russian arms trafficker serving a 25-year US prison sentence, as part of a potential deal to secure the release of Griner and Whelan, according to people briefed on the matter.
“It has to do with the nature of the sham charges against him, which were based on espionage,” Kirby told CNN Thursday.
Paul Whelan is escorted inside of a court building in Moscow in 2019.
(Tatyana Makeyeva/Reuters)
Whelan, a US citizen and former Marine who was arrested in 2018 on espionage charges — which he has consistently and vehemently denied — is serving a 16-year prison sentence in Russia.
Kirby said that the US is “not back to square one” in its negotiations for Whelan’s release, adding that “we are going to stay at those active discussions going forward.”
In an exclusive call with CNN today, Whelan said he was happy that Griner was released but was “disappointed” the Biden administration had not done more to secure his release.
Pressed on whether the world is more dangerous with Bout freed, Kirby said, “I can assure you … our focus on our national security interests is not going to change. … And so with Mr. Bout being back on the street, we’re gonna stay focused on making sure we can defend this country.”
CNN’s Betsy Klein contributed reporting to this post.
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Ukraine says it continues to work with UN nuclear agency on demilitarizing Zaporizhzhia plant
From CNN Julia Kesaieva and Tim Lister
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant outside Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhia region of Russian-controlled Ukraine, on October 14.
(Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters)
A top Ukrainian official said his government is working with the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog agency to create a security zone around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, after Russian officials appeared to cast doubt on the idea.
After a meeting with his Slovak counterpart, Kuleba said Ukraine remained in close contact with IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, who has been trying to broker a deal that would protect the plant and its surroundings from the conflict.
Kuleba said it was extremely difficult to assure the safety of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants “without stopping Russian missile attacks on the territory of Ukraine.”
And earlier Thursday, Ukraine’s state-owned nuclear company Energoatom said Russian forces had deployed new weapons at the plant.
It claimed Russia brought several “Grad” rocket launchers to the plant and situated them close to one of the reactors and the storage for spent nuclear fuel.
CNN is unable to confirm the allegation.
What Russia said: Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova appeared to cast doubt on the prospects for an agreement earlier this week.
She was asked: “The head of the IAEA R. Grossi said that experts are close to an acceptable agreement between Ukraine and Russia on the creation of a security zone around the Zaporizhzhia NPP (ZNPP). How would you comment on this statement? Is it possible to transfer control over ZNPP to a third party? Is the visit of the head of the IAEA R. Grossi to Russia expected?”
“There can be no talk of any withdrawal of the Zaporizhzhia NPP from Russian control or transfer of control over it to some ‘third party,’” Zakharova responded. “The station is located on Russian territory and is fully controlled by Russia. We presume that only we are able to ensure the physical and nuclear safety of ZNPP.”
Putin also signed a decree federalizing the territory’s nuclear plant, which has been occupied by Russian troops for months. Ukraine has said plant employees were forced to obtain Russian passports and sign employment contracts with Russia’s state nuclear energy agency. CNN has been unable to verify those allegations.
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Whelan says he knows Russia considers him to be in a different category than Griner
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
US officials have indicated that the Russians refused to release detained American Paul Whelan despite US efforts during negotiations.
Whelan said he was told that because the Russians have accused him of being a spy, “they’ve put me at a level higher than what they did with Trevor (Reed) and Brittney.”
“That raises a lot of concerns, because none of it is true. And they’re trying to get out of United States, what the United States may not be able to provide, but this is basically political extortion,” he said.
He said he was aware that he was considered in a different category than Griner. “The Russians have always said so.”
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Paul Whelan tells CNN he is "greatly disappointed" Biden administration hasn't done more to secure his release
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan stands inside a defendants' cage before a court hearing in Moscow, Russia, on August 23, 2019
Remember: Whelan, a US, Irish, British and Canadian citizen, was detained at a Moscow hotel in December 2018 by Russian authorities who alleged he was involved in an intelligence operation. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges he has vehemently denied.
He said he was happy that Griner was released but told CNN he “was led to believe that things were moving in the right direction, and that the governments were negotiating and that something would happen fairly soon.”
Now, he says he hopes that President Joe Biden and his administration “would do everything they could to get me home, regardless of the price they might have to pay at this point.”
If a message could go to Biden, it would be that “this is a precarious situation that needs to be resolved quickly,” Whelan said. “My bags are packed. I’m ready to go home. I just need an airplane to come and get me.”
Whelan also said he would like to speak to Biden directly, noting he had spoken to an administration official earlier in the day about the situation, but “I think that message really needs to go to people like the president, so they understand personally what I’m dealing with, and what we deal with in these foreign prisons and under these circumstances.”
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Griner's WNBA team: "She's coming home"
Brittney Griner’s WNBA team Phoenix Mercury reacted on Twitter to the news that the star has been released from Russian detention in a prisoner swap.
The team has been vocal on Twitter, marking the number of days that Griner had been held and advocating for her release.
The team, along with the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, also later released a longer statement:
“The Fight to bring her home as illustrated the power of the WNBA, its players, platform, and mission. We no longer have to Bring BG Home – she’s on her way,” the statement added.
Both the NBA and WNBA commissioners have also issued statements on Griner’s release.
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said “there has not been a day over the past ten months where we all haven’t had Brittney Griner on our minds and in our hearts and that has now turned into a collective wave of joy and relief knowing that she will soon be reunited with her family, the WNBA player community, and her friends. BG has shown extraordinary courage and dignity in the face of enormous adversity.” She said the organization is grateful to President Joe Biden’s administration and hopes Paul Whelan and other detained Americans are brought home.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said “Brittney has had to endure an unimaginable situation and we’re thrilled that she is on her way home to her family and friends. We thank the members of the NBA and WNBA community who never wavered in their efforts to raise awareness of Brittney’s unjust circumstances.”
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Months of "difficult" negotiations led to Brittney Griner's release. Here's how it happened
From CNN's Kevin Liptak
Months and months of “difficult” negotiations with the Russians culminated in Thursday’s prisoner swap securing the release of Brittney Griner, senior US administration officials said, with it becoming clear only in recent weeks that an opening existed for the deal to occur.
How the swap unfolded: The final deal itself came together over the past 48 hours, the officials said, launching the process of moving Griner from the penal colony where she was serving a lengthy sentence.
On Thursday morning, she boarded a plane for the United Arab Emirates. Upon arriving there, she was met on the tarmac by US officials, including special presidential envoy for hostage affairs Roger Carstens. She was in “an extremely upbeat mood” and “all smiles” and “grateful.”
The WNBA star is in good health and is “being offered a wide range of support options,” the officials said. She’ll be offered a “full range” of services to help transition back to life at home.
Bout’s release required an act of clemency from the president ending Bout’s time in US custody after more than 12 years. Yet the official made clear the guilt of his conviction remained in place.
The US briefed a number of key partners — including the Ukrainians — on the negotiations and agreement securing Griner’s release. Yet the war in Ukraine was not itself at the center of the talks securing her release.
The US engaged a number of other international partners in the effort to release Griner, including the United Arab Emirates, where she was flown after leaving Russia. Yet asked about the role of Saudi Arabia, which claimed in a statement that its powerful crown price Mohammed bin Salman jointly led mediation efforts securing Griner’s release, US officials suggested a number of countries were involved.
But Paul Whelan remains in Russian detention: Griner’s release was a significant breakthrough, but still a “painful” one, the officials said. In exchange for a convicted arms dealer, Russia would only agree to release Griner, leaving another American — Paul Whelan — behind. In multiple engagements over the past weeks and months, Russian officials made clear that releasing Viktor Bout was the only way they would free Griner from her detention.
Biden made the “difficult decision” to accept the deal. Senior US government officials visited Whelan’s sister to “share and talk through” the news. Another senior US official spoke at length Thursday with Whelan himself, still in a Russian prison.
The US has proposed multiple options to Russia to secure Whelan’s release, the officials said, and believes Moscow remains open to talks.
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Putin makes rare public comments about Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure
From CNN's Seb Shukla
Workers dismantle an autotransformer which stands completely destroyed after the Ukrenergo high voltage power substation was hit by a missile strike on October 17, in central Ukraine.
(Ed Ram/Getty Images)
Russian President Vladimir Putin has made rare public comments specifically addressing the attacks from the Russian Armed Forces on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
Speaking after an awards ceremony for “Heroes of Russia” at the Kremlin, he addressed a group of soldiers receiving the awards, clutching a glass of champagne.
“Yes, we are doing it. But who started it?” said the president — who ordered the invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24.
He listed a series of events he blames on the Ukrainians: “Who hit the Crimean bridge? Who blew up the power lines from the Kursk nuclear power plant?”
Some background: The reference to the bridge pertains to an explosion that took place on the Kerch bridge — which connects Crimea to Russia — on Oct. 8, when a truck crossing it exploded and caused it to be partially destroyed. The Ukrainians have never claimed responsibility, but the Kremlin was quick to point fingers toward Kyiv. In the days following the bridge explosion, Putin said “further acts of terrorism on the territory of Russia will be harsh … have no doubt about that.” Last week, Putin appeared on the bridge while he was shown repairs, and then he drove a car across it.
The reference to Kursk appears to reference Russia’s announcement that an airfield in the Kursk region, which neighbors Ukraine, was targeted in a drone attack. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has offered no comment on recent explosions, including in Kursk, which are deep within Russia. Officially, the targets are well beyond the reach of the country’s declared drones.
At the awards ceremony, Putin continued to list alleged aggressions: “Who is not supplying water to Donetsk? Not supplying water to a city of million is an act of genocide.”
He ended his apparent off-the-cuff comments by claiming there is no mention of the water situation. “No one has said a word about it anywhere. At all! Complete silence,” he said.
Local Russian authorities in Donetsk — which Putin claimed to annex in defiance of international law — have reported frequent shelling of the city this week.
The president tersely compared the difference in reactions between attacks on Russia and attacks on Ukraine.
He ended by saying that “it won’t interfere with our combat missions.”
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"Welcome home, BG!" USA Basketball celebrates Griner's release
From CNN's David Close
USA Basketball celebrated in a tweet Thursday the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner from Russian detention as part of a prisoner swap.
Griner is a two-time Olympian (2016, 2020) and two-time Olympic gold medalist.
The team expressed gratitude toward the US government for its work on Griner’s release.
“We look forward to seeing Brittney again when the time is right and wish her the best in the days and weeks ahead,” it added.
See the tweet below:
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Bout's lawyer says his client urged legal team to have patience for prisoner swap
From CNN's Matthew Chance in London
Russian arm dealer Viktor Bout looks from behind bars at the Criminal Court in Bangkok, Thailand, on October 10, 2008.
(Nicolas Asfouri/AFP/Getty Images)
Steve Zissou, Viktor Bout’s lawyer in the US, told CNN on Thursday that the prisoner swap between Brittney Griner and his client is “fair.”
“As I have urged for some time, given the fifteen long years that Viktor Bout has been in custody since the United States government targeted him in 2006, his exchange for Brittney Griner, who has only been in custody for a few months, is fair,” he said in a statement to CNN.
Since the visit of Russia’s Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov in October to the Marion prison where Bout was serving his sentence, Bout has been very confident he would be released, Zissou told CNN.
The lawyer added that Bout has been urging his legal team to “chill out” and have “long patience.”
Zissou told CNN said that his legal team knew a swap was imminent 24 hours ago.
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Brittney Griner's prisoner exchange was a result of mediation from UAE and Saudi Arabia
From CNN's Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi
The prisoner exchange between the US and Russia for Brittney Griner and Viktor Bout was secured by joint mediation between UAE and Saudi Arabia, the countries said in a statement.
The prisoner exchange was completed successfully at Abu Dhabi Airport on Thursday, the Russian foreign ministry said earlier Thursday.. US President Joe Biden expressed his gratitude to the UAE for its role in the swap in remarks at the White House.
The statement confirmed that Abu Dhabi received Griner by private plane from Moscow after the Russian authorities released her, in conjunction with the reception of Bout on a private plane from Washington after the US authorities released him, in the presence of specialists from the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
“Both America and Russia claimed their citizens, in preparation for transfer to their countries,” the statement said. “The UAE and Saudi Arabian foreign ministries expressed the thanks of their respective governments to the governments of the US and Russia for their cooperation and response, and for the joint mediation efforts made by the leaderships of the two countries.”
A senior Emirati official told CNN the exchange of Griner and Bout was done at al Bateen airport in Abu Dhabi, which is an executive airport. Griner took off at approximately 9 a.m. ET just after Bout’s flight left.
The decision was discussed when UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in October. They also spoke about it and other issues on a call Wednesday.
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US secretary of state praises Griner release and says effort to bring Whelan home will not relent
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
U.S. President Joe Biden and Cherelle Griner speak on the phone with WNBA basketball star Brittney Griner as Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken look on, at the White House in Washington, U.S. on December 8.
(The White House/Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken praised the release of Brittney Griner from Russian detention and said the administration will continue efforts to bring Paul Whelan and other detainees back to the US.
The country’s top diplomat said it “was as moving as it was unforgettable” to listen to Griner’s wife, Cherelle, speak with Brittney in the Oval office today.
“Their strength, their resilience, has been nothing … short of inspiring,” Blinken said.
In his public remarks Thursday, Blinken was also quick to acknowledge the reality of Whelan’s continued detention.
“[We] will not relent in our efforts to bring Paul and all other U.S. nationals held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad home to their loved ones where they belong,” the secretary of state said in an earlier statement.
Whelan, a US citizen and former Marine — who was arrested in 2018 on espionage charges, which he has consistently and vehemently denied — is serving a 16-year prison sentence.
“We also extend deep appreciation to our many partners who helped achieve this outcome, including our Emirati friends, who assisted in the transfer today,” he said, indicating that the prisoner swap for Griner took place in the United Arab Emirates.
“While we celebrate Brittney’s release, Paul Whelan and his family continue to suffer needlessly,” Blinken said. “Despite our ceaseless efforts, the Russian Government has not yet been willing to bring a long overdue end to his wrongful detention. I wholeheartedly wish we could have brought Paul home today on the same plane with Brittney.”
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CNN's Van Jones on Griner's release: This is a result of "a grassroots movement"
CNN political commentator Van Jones said the release of Brittney Griner from Russian detention was the result of an extensive “grassroots movement” — led especially by Black women back in the US.
“Here is the deal, if you can bring one home, you can bring two home. So I don’t see this as bad sign for Paul Whelan. I think it is a good sign for what Americans can do when we stand together,” he added.
CNN’s Don Lemon noted the significance of the moment for the LGBTQ community, as members of the community face challenges in the US and around the world.
Jones said Griner represents “everything in this country — she’s female, she’s LGBTQ, she’s Black, and she is extraordinary. She’s excellent. She’s overcome. She’s an icon. She’s done everything you can do in her sport and more — and yet she still wasn’t safe.”
“We didn’t let it stand. Americans came together. And I think that Biden and Kamala Harris, this is one of the things I think they’ll be the most proud of,” he said.
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"It was a choice to get Brittney or nothing," US official says
From CNN's MJ Lee
A US official says Russians signaled more recently that they were only willing to negotiate for Brittney Griner and not Paul Whelan. That is because Russians have been handling their cases differently based on what each has been accused of.
The Biden administration repeatedly made offers to get Whelan as part of this deal – even after Russia made clear only Griner was acceptable.
In the end, when it was clear Russia was going to refuse on Whelan, the US had to accept it.
“It was a choice to get Brittney or nothing,” the US official said.
The official says it was a “difficult decision” for President Joe Biden but one he felt he had to make.
Remember: Whelan, a US, Irish, British and Canadian citizen, was detained at a Moscow hotel in December 2018 by Russian authorities who alleged he was involved in an intelligence operation. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges he has vehemently denied.
Whelan had been carrying out his sentence at a labor camp in Mordovia, an eight-hour drive from Moscow, where he told CNN in June 2021 he spent his days working in a clothing factory that he called a “sweatshop.”
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The Whelan family is happy for Griner's release, but devastated Paul was left behind
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
Paul Whelan stands inside a defendants' cage during a hearing at a court in Moscow, Russia, on August 23, 2019.
(Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images)
The family of Paul Whelan, the American wrongful detainee left behind in Russia, expressed happiness at the news that Brittney Griner is on her way home, but said they are “devastated” that he was left behind.
They commended the Biden administration for both making the deal to secure her release, and noted they had been given a heads up about the deal.
“And now what? How do you continue to survive, day after day, when you know that your government has failed twice to free you from a foreign prison? I can’t imagine he retains any hope that a government will negotiate his freedom at this point. It’s clear that the US government has no concessions that the Russian government will take for Paul Whelan. And so Paul will remain a prisoner until that changes,” Whelan said.
“Increasingly, I worry that Paul himself won’t survive 12 more years in a Russian labor colony. He has tried to stay healthy but one wonders how long that determination to keep going can endure,” he said, noting that “the likelihood that our parents will see their son again diminishes each day his wrongful detention continues.”
David Whelan said he did not know if his brother was aware of Griner’s release yet, “although he will surely learn from Russian media.”
Whelan commended the Biden administration for making the deal to free Griner, however, and acknowledged that the family had been given a heads up.
“I am so glad that Brittney Griner is on her way home. As the family member of a Russian hostage, I can literally only imagine the joy she will have, being reunited with her loved ones, and in time for the holidays,”
“The Biden administration made the right decision to bring Ms. Griner home, and to make the deal that was possible, rather than waiting for one that wasn’t going to happen,” he said.
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"This was not a choice of which American to bring home," Biden says as prisoner swap excludes Paul Whelan
President Joe Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, on December 8.
(Patrick Semansky/AP)
President Joe Biden addressed the fact that the swap did not include another American who the State Department has declared wrongfully detained: Paul Whelan.
“While we have not yet succeeded in securing Paul’s release, we are not giving up. We will never give up. We remain in close touch with Paul’s family, the Whelan family. My thoughts and prayers are with them today. They have to have such mixed emotions today,” Biden added.
“I guarantee,” Biden said, that the US will keep working on Whelan’s release.
Some background: Whelan, a US, Irish, British and Canadian citizen, was detained at a Moscow hotel in December 2018 by Russian authorities who alleged he was involved in an intelligence operation. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges he has vehemently denied.
Whelan had been carrying out his sentence at a labor camp in Mordovia, an eight-hour drive from Moscow, where he told CNN in June 2021 he spent his days working in a clothing factory that he called a “sweatshop.”
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Griner's wife: "The most important emotion that I have right now is just sincere gratitude"
Cherelle Griner talks about the release by Russia of her wife, WNBA basketball star Brittney Griner, as U.S. President Joe Biden listens, in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, U.S. on December 8.
(Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)
WNBA star Brittney Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, thanked US President Joe Biden for his administration’s efforts in releasing Griner from Russian detention.
“Today my family is whole, but as you are all aware, there are so many other families that are not whole,” she added later on in her remarks, referencing other Americans that remain in Russian detention including Paul Whelan.
“I will say that B.G. (Brittney Griner) and I will remain committed to the work of getting every American home, including Paul, whose family is in our hearts today as we celebrate B.G. being home,” she said.
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Biden: "Brittney is in good spirits"
President Joe Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Washington, on December 8.
(Patrick Semansky/AP)
President Joe Biden said WNBA star Brittney Griner “is in good spirits” as she is on a plane back to the US.
Biden said Griner’s went through her trial in Russia and her time in detention with “grit and incredible integrity.”
“She wrote to me back in July. She didn’t ask for special treatment, even though we’d been working on her release from day one. She requested a simple, quote, “please don’t forget about me and the other American detainees,” he added.
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Biden: "Brittney will soon be back in the arms of her loved ones"
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks to reporters about the release of WNBA basketball star Brittney Griner by Russia, as Vice President Kamala Harris and Cherelle Griner listen, in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington D.C, on December 8.
(Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)
President Joe Biden addressed the nation from the White House on Thursday morning on Brittney Griner’s release.
“After months of being unjustly detained in Russia, held in intolerable circumstances, Brittney will soon be back in the arms of her loved ones and she should have been there all along,” he said.
“This is a day we worked toward for a long time. We never stopped pushing for her release. It took painstaking and intense negotiations,” he added, thanking all those who involved in her release as well as the UAE, where the swap took place.
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This was "the only deal we could make right now," senior Biden administration official says
From CNN's MJ Lee
US President Joe Biden was “personally involved and in constant touch” with his team as this deal came together in the final days and after he gave his personal green light to execute the trade. The briefings – and questions Biden asked his team – were constant, a senior administration official says.
Senior administration official adds that this was the right deal to make – and notably, “the only deal we could make right now.”
Biden “will speak to the importance of Brittney being brought home safely” in his remarks on Thursday morning, a White House official tells CNN,
He is also expected to address Paul Whelan, who remains imprisoned in Russia, and will reiterate the US “commitment to ensuring Paul Whelan comes home as well.”
Contribution Betsy Klein
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NOW: Biden delivers remarks on Brittney Griner
From CNN's Betsy Klein, Kevin Liptak and Jennifer Hansler
US President Joe Biden is speaking now on the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner’s release from Russian detention.
Griner was released from Russian detention in a prisoner swap for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, according to a source familiar
Griner is now in the custody of US officials. Biden gave final approval for the prisoner swap in the past week, an official familiar with the matter said, and the president was updated on the swap as it was taking place this morning.
Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, is with the president at the White House, according to a source familiar.
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Viktor Bout has returned home, Russian state media reports
From CNN's Uliana Pavlova and Anna Chernova
Russia said on Thursday that Viktor Bout has returned home to Russia, according to state media RIA Novosti, citing the foreign ministry.
The prisoner exchange with WNBA star Brittney Griner was “completed successfully at Abu Dhabi Airport” on Thursday, state media added.
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Brittney Griner is "on her way home," Biden says
President Joe Biden is with Brittney Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, at the White House. He tweeted two pictures along with Griner’s news, saying the WNBS star is “safe” and “on her way home.”
Biden was briefed throughout the morning as he waited for confirmation that Griner was back in US hands, a US official says.
Once that happened, Biden spoke with Griner from the Oval Office, with Griner’s wife, Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken also on the call, per a second official.
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Brittney Griner is now in the custody of US officials
From CNN's Jennifer Hansler
The US has secured the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner, a US official told CNN. She is now in the custody of US officials.
The swap did not include another American that the State Department has declared wrongfully detailed, Paul Whelan.
Both the families of Griner Whelan have been informed of her release, according to a source familiar.
US President Joe Biden is expected to make remarks soon.
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Ukraine's army says its drone approval process has been streamlined, as Moscow accuses Kyiv of strikes
From CNN's Olga Voitovych in Kyiv
Ukraine’s defense minister has said that the army has significantly streamlined its protocol for approving unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and other weaponry, a revelation that comes days after Moscow accused Kyiv of drone strikes on air bases deep inside its territory.
“The procedures for admission of weapons and military equipment to operate in the Armed Forces were significantly simplified. This has already had a significant effect, primarily in the field of UAVs,” Oleksii Reznikov said.
Reznikov explained that the previous process to approve one or two drones could take up to two years. In comparison, a new system has allowed seven Ukrainian-made UAVs to be green-lit for operation in the Ukrainian armed forces over the past 30 days.
He added there are 19 pending applications for UAVs.
Some background: Russia unleashed a fresh wave of missiles towards Ukraine earlier this week, as it accused Kyiv of striking military airfields inside Russia – raising the stakes for Moscow at a time when its war on Ukraine is faltering. Russia has said that Ukrainian drones carried out three strikes on its bases, yet two of the targets are hundreds of miles inside Russian territory and beyond the reach of Ukraine’s declared drone arsenal.
On Thursday, Sevastopol’s Russian-appointed governor Mikhail Razvozhaev said that Russia’s Black Sea Fleet had shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle off the Crimean Peninsula. The Kremlin said Crimea and Sevastopol faced the risk “terrorist attacks” from Ukraine, but said the region is ready to repel them.
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WNBA star Brittney Griner released from Russian detention in prisoner swap for convicted arms dealer
From Jennifer Hansler and Kylie Atwood
Brittney Griner has been released from Russian detention in a prisoner swap for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
(Getty Images, Reuters)
WNBA star Brittney Griner has been released from Russian detention in a prisoner swap for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, according to a source familiar
Bout, nicknamed the “Merchant of Death” is a former Soviet military officer serving a 25-year prison sentence in the United States on charges of conspiring to kill Americans, acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles, and provide material support to a terrorist organization. Moscow had slammed his sentencing in 2012 as “baseless and biased” and Bout has maintained he is innocent.
Griner — who had for years played in the off-season for a Russian women’s basketball team, had been detained since February, when she was arrested on drug smuggling charges at an airport in the Moscow region. Despite her testimony that she had inadvertently packed the cannabis oil found in her luggage, she was sentenced to nine years in prison in early August and was moved to a penal colony in Mordovia in mid-November after losing her appeal.
The swap did not include another American that the State Department has declared wrongfully detailed, Paul Whelan.
He is a US, Irish, British and Canadian citizen — was detained at a Moscow hotel in December 2018 by Russian authorities who alleged he was involved in an intelligence operation. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges he has vehemently denied. Whelan had been carrying out his sentence at a labor camp in Mordovia, an eight-hour drive from Moscow, where he told CNN in June 2021 he spent his days working in a clothing factory that he called a “sweatshop.”
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Who is Viktor Bout, the Russian arms dealer at the center of the Brittney Griner prisoner swap?
From CNN's Eliza Mackintosh
Alleged Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout sits in a temporary cell ahead of a hearing at the Criminal Court in Bangkok, Thailand, on August 20, 2010.
(Christophe Archambault/AFP/Getty Images)
US basketball star Brittney Griner’s freedom ultimately hinged on the release of a convicted Russian arms dealer, nicknamed the “Merchant of Death” by his accusers, whose life story inspired a Hollywood film.
Viktor Bout, a former Soviet military officer, is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence in the United States on charges of conspiring to kill Americans, acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles, and provide material support to a terrorist organization. Bout has maintained he is innocent.
The Kremlin has long called for his release, slamming his sentencing in 2012 as “baseless and biased.”
The Russian businessman who speaks six languages eluded international arrest warrants and asset freezes for years. He was arrested in a sting operation in 2008 led by US drug enforcement agents in Thailand posing as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known by the acronym FARC. He was eventually extradited to the US in 2010 after a protracted court proceeding.
“He was finally brought to justice in an American court for agreeing to provide a staggering number of military-grade weapons to an avowed terrorist organization committed to killing Americans.”
The trial honed in on Bout’s role in supplying weapons to FARC, a guerrilla group that waged an insurgency in Colombia until 2016. The US said the weapons were intended to kill US citizens.
But Bout’s history in the arms trade extended much further afield. He has been accused of assembling a fleet of cargo planes to traffic military-grade weapons to conflict zones around the world since the 1990s, fueling bloody conflicts from Liberia to Sierra Leone and Afghanistan. Allegations of trafficking activities in Liberia prompted US authorities to freeze his American assets in 2004 and blocked any US transactions.
Bout has repeatedly maintained that he operated legitimate businesses and acted as a mere logistics provider. He is believed to be in his 50s, with his age in dispute because of different passports and documents.
It's mid-afternoon in Kyiv. Here's what you need to know.
From CNN staff
Russia accused Ukrainian forces of shelling the western city of Belgorod and said its Black Sea Fleet had downed a drone over the occupied Crimean Peninsula on Thursday, suggesting that Kyiv is keeping up its efforts to hit back against Moscow far beyond the front lines of the war.
Here are the latest developments:
Shelling in Belgorod: A power line in Belgorod sustained damage caused by “shell fragment” near the Ukrainian border, according a statement from governor Vyacheslav Gladkov on Thursday. Preliminary indications show there are no civilian casualties, he added.
Kremlin intercepts drone in Sevastopol: Russia said its Black Sea Fleet shot down a drone near the strategic, Russian-occupied port city of Sevastopol on Thursday, as the Kremlin warned of “terrorist attacks” on the Crimean Peninsula.
Race to repair Ukrainian energy grid: “Frost, rain with snow and strong wind” paired with continuing clashes are hindering repairs to Ukraine’s power grid, as technicians race to get energy infrastructure damaged in weeks of relentless Russian strikes back up and running, according to state energy company Ukrenergo.
Putin says war is “going to take a while”: Nearly 10 months after his invasion of Ukraine began, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday acknowledged that the conflict is “going to take a while,” but said that there was no need to mobilize more forces at the moment. He also played down the possibility of using nuclear weapons, adding that while the threat of nuclear war is “increasing,” Russia “has not gone crazy.”
US weighs Kyiv’s request for controversial weapons: Ukrainian officials and lawmakers have urged the Biden administration and members of Congress to provide the Ukrainian military with cluster munition warheads, weapons that are banned by more than 100 countries but that Russia continues to use to devastating effect inside Ukraine.
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Russia says it shot down a drone over Crimea, as the Kremlin warns of "terrorist attacks"
From CNN’s Anna Chernova
A loud explosion rang out over the strategic, Russian-occupied port city of Sevastopol on Thursday and Russia said it had intercepted a drone, indicating that Kyiv is keeping up its efforts to hit back against Moscow beyond the front lines of the war.
The city’s Russian-appointed governor Mikhail Razvozhaev said on Telegram that Russia’s Black Sea Fleet had shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle over the sea. “Our military, as always, worked well,” he added.
The Black Sea Fleet is headquartered in Sevastopol, on the Crimean peninsula, which Russia illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014. Throughout the war, Moscow has used the ships to launch cruise missiles against Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, including repeated assaults on its power grid.
Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin’s spokesman, told reporters on Thursday that Crimea and Sevastopol faced the risk of attacks, but that the region was ready to repel them. “Risks certainly exist, because the Ukrainian side continues its line of organizing terrorist attacks,” Peskov said, adding that “effective measures are being taken to counter (them).”
Peskov’s comments came several days after the Russian Defense Ministry accused Ukraine of using drones to carry out three strikes on Russian military air bases, yet two of the targets are hundreds of miles inside Russian territory and beyond the reach of Ukraine’s declared drone arsenal.
Two residents of Sevastopol were also detained Thursday on suspicion of treason by means of sharing information with Ukraine’s Security Service, according to Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) press service, which claimed that they shared the “location of facilities of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation for a fee” with Kyiv. Criminal proceedings have begun against the two suspects, who are facing charges of “high treason,” the FSB said.
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Winter weather and artillery fire hinder Ukrainian power grid repairs, with biggest issues in the east
From CNN's Olga Voitovych in Kyiv
Citizens are seen making their way through snow on December 7, in Borodyanka, Ukraine.
(Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
Winter weather conditions and ongoing fighting are hindering repairs to Ukraine’s power grid, as technicians race to get energy infrastructure damaged in weeks of relentless Russian strikes back up and running.
Ukrainian state energy agency, Ukrenergo, said Thursday there was a “significant shortage of electricity in the system,” adding that consumption limits had been exceeded and emergency outages introduced in several regions. The outages come as temperatures are plummeting below freezing across the country.
“Frost, rain with snow and strong wind in many regions in the west of the country cause icing of wires and their damage,” Ukrenergo said.
But the worst challenges are in the east of the country, where access to the sites are complicated by continued shelling and artillery fire.
“In the evening the enemy again hit several areas with massive artillery fire. The power grids are being inspected, where the situation allows. Repair work will begin after receiving access from the military,” the agency added.
Emergency repairs are ongoing in Kyiv and Odessa.
Some background: Russia unleashed yet another wave of drone and missile attacks across Ukraine on Monday, targeting the country’s energy infrastructure. Ukraine has been facing a wide-scale assault on critical infrastructure and power sources since early October, as part of Moscow’s weaponization of winter. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes on Monday caused extensive power outages in several regions, including Kyiv and Odesa.
The impact: Ukraine’s health ministry on Tuesday announced the suspension of planned surgeries in an effort to insulate the medical system from the impacts of rolling power outages. “They will be carried out when the situation around the supply of electricity stabilizes…all emergency medical care will be provided to patients in full,” the statement said.
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Russia's Belgorod shelled by Ukrainian forces, governor claims
From CNN's Olga Voitovych, Josh Pennington and Seb Shukla
Ukrainian forces have shelled the western Russian city of Belgorod, according to the region’s governor Vyacheslav Gladkov.
Gladkov said on Telegram Thursday that the city, located about 35 kilometers (21 miles) from the Ukrainian border, had sustained damage to a power line caused by “shell fragment.”
Preliminary indications show there are no civilian casualties, he said.
Some context: It’s not the first time Belgorod has been targeted, according to the governor. On Nov. 15, he claimed two people had been killed in the city by Ukrainian shelling.
The alleged shelling of Belgorod comes after Russia accused Kyiv of using drones to strike military airfields far inside its territory on Monday and Tuesday — an extraordinary breach of Moscow’s assumptions that it can protect its deep interior.
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Ukraine war is going to "take a while," Putin says as he warns nuclear risk is increasing
From CNN's Jessie Yeung and Katharina Krebs
Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures during a forum on November 29.
(Stringer/Getty Images)
Nearly 10 months after his invasion of Ukraine began, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday acknowledged that the conflict is “going to take a while,” as he also warned of the “increasing” threat of nuclear war.
Speaking at a meeting of Russia’s Human Rights Council at the Kremlin, Putin said Moscow will fightby “all available means at our disposal,” in what he insists on calling a “special military operation,” but also said he saw no immediate need to mobilize more troops.
And without categorically ruling out the first use of nuclear weapons, Putin said he viewed the Russian nuclear arsenal as a deterrent rather than a provocation.
CNN Exclusive: US weighs Ukrainian requests for access to stockpile of controversial cluster munitions
From CNN's Natasha Bertrand, Alex Marquardt and Zachary Cohen
Ukrainian officials and lawmakers have in recent months urged the Biden administration and members of Congress to provide the Ukrainian military with cluster munition warheads, weapons that are banned by more than 100 countries but that Russia continues to use to devastating effect inside Ukraine.
The Ukrainian request for the cluster munitions, which was described to CNN by multiple US and Ukrainian officials, is one of the most controversial requests the Ukrainians have made to the US since the war began in February.
Senior Biden administration officials have been fielding this request for months and have not rejected it outright, CNN has learned, a detail that has not been previously reported.
Cluster munitions are imprecise by design, and scatter “bomblets” across large areas that can fail to explode on impact and can pose a long-term risk to anyone who encounters them, similar to landmines. They also create “nasty, bloody fragmentation” to anyone hit by them because of the dozens of submunitions that detonate at once across a large area, Mark Hiznay, a weapons expert and the associate arms director for Human Rights Watch, previously told CNN.
Top US officials have publicly stated that they plan to give the Ukrainians as much support as they need to give them an upper hand at the negotiating table with Russia, should it come to that. But western military equipment is not infinite, and as stockpiles of warheads dwindle, the Ukrainians have made plain to the US that it could use the cluster munitions currently gathering dust in storage.
Germany to send 18 more self-propelled howitzers to Ukraine
From CNN's Fred Pleitgen and Chris Stern in Berlin
Germany plans to supply Ukraine with 18 RCH 155 wheeled howitzers, according to the government’s updated list of arms deliveries to Ukraine.
The delivery is in “preparation/implementation” phase, according to the list.
Germany will also be providing an additional 100 drone defense sensors and jammers, two hangar tents and seven load-handling trucks, according to the list.
Germany and the Netherlands have already sent 14 self-propelled howitzers PzH2000 to Ukraine, along with thousands of rounds of ammunition.
The RCH 155 is a modernized version of the PzH 2000 on wheels instead of tracks and with a higher degree of automation and crew safety, according to the company producing the howitzer, Krauss Maffei Wegmann. The German government legally cleared the way for RCH 155s to be sent to Ukraine in late September.
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Zelensky says 10 civilians killed in one Russian strike against town in Donetsk
From CNN's Julia Kesaieva
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says 10 civilians were killed Wednesday in a Russian rocket attack on the town of Kurakhove in Donetsk. Additionally, he said four police officers were killed by Russian mines in Kherson in the south.
In what he said had been a long and difficult day, Zelensky accused the Russian army of “a very brutal, absolutely deliberate strike at Kurakhove, precisely at civilians. At ordinary people. At the market, elevator, gas station, bus station, residential buildings,” he said in his daily video message.
He said battles continue to rage around Bakhmut in Donetsk.
Zelensky said that among the dead in Kherson was the chief of police of the Cherkasy region in northern Ukraine, Mykhailo Kuratchenko, who had gone to the south to help with “stabilization” measures after Kherson was liberated last month.
On energy: The Ukrainian president said that for now the energy situation is improving but it will not reach its maximum capacity.
Zelensky said Kyiv and Lviv regions were among the most affected by outages.
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Inside a Kramatorsk hospital saving the lives of Ukraine's war wounded
From CNN's Jo Shelley, Sam Kiley, Peter Rudden and Olha Konovalova
Doctors lift a patient onto a bed to have CT scan
(Jo Shelley/CNN)
As the young soldier lies motionless in the machine, a group of doctors huddle over a computer in an adjoining room.
The images from the CT scanner show shrapnel lodged deep in the left-hand side of the man’s brain. “He needs urgent surgery,” 37-year-old neurosurgeon Oleg Serkiz says.
As one patient is prepared for the operating table, paramedics in military fatigues deliver another soldier on a stretcher, and then another — a constant stream of Ukraine’s fittest bodies now torn by metal and punctured by bullets.
These men were rushed from the front line to a specialist trauma hospital in the city of Kramatorsk on Wednesday afternoon after being wounded in the bloody battle for the eastern town of Bakhmut. Only hours earlier, they were the adrenaline-pumped vanguard of the Ukrainian army’s attempt to take on the Russian troops – among them mercenaries that hold much of the area. Now they wait, cold and pale, for their turn on the operating table.
Chief surgeon Dr. Vitaly Malanchuk is often the first to assess the men’s injuries.
“Polytrauma” is what a lay person would call many holes in the body.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is named TIME magazine's person of the year
From CNN's Amy Woodyatt, Sebastian Shukla and Nimi Princewill
TIME magazine has named Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian leader whose attempt to fight off Russia’s invasion of his country has won widespread acclaim, as its person of the year, alongside “the spirit of Ukraine.”
