Gerschkovich is still awaiting a trial, but Whelan, who was arrested on similar charges in 2018 while attending a friend’s wedding, was sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2020.
In Washington, Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged the families of Americans who are being detained or held hostage to not give up hope.
Speaking Tuesday at a regular press briefing at the State Department, spokesperson Mathew Miller reiterated that Russia had rejected “significant proposals” for the two men’s release, "one as recently as a few weeks ago.
According to CBS Detroit, Whelan’s brother David said in an email earlier this month that the White House was telling the family Paul’s case remained a top priority, but that he was unsure what that meant anymore.
“It has taken nearly twelve months for the U.S. to gather its resources and make a singular offer for Paul’s freedom,” David Whelan said in the email.
The U.S. has negotiated prisoner swaps with Russia in the past, including the high-profile 2022 deal that saw basketball star Brittney Griner freed by Moscow in exchange for the U.S. releasing long-jailed arms dealer Viktor Bout, whose illicit deeds earned him the nickname,“the Merchant of Death.”
The original article contains 749 words, the summary contains 198 words. Saved 74%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Gerschkovich is still awaiting a trial, but Whelan, who was arrested on similar charges in 2018 while attending a friend’s wedding, was sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2020.
In Washington, Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged the families of Americans who are being detained or held hostage to not give up hope.
Speaking Tuesday at a regular press briefing at the State Department, spokesperson Mathew Miller reiterated that Russia had rejected “significant proposals” for the two men’s release, "one as recently as a few weeks ago.
According to CBS Detroit, Whelan’s brother David said in an email earlier this month that the White House was telling the family Paul’s case remained a top priority, but that he was unsure what that meant anymore.
“It has taken nearly twelve months for the U.S. to gather its resources and make a singular offer for Paul’s freedom,” David Whelan said in the email.
The U.S. has negotiated prisoner swaps with Russia in the past, including the high-profile 2022 deal that saw basketball star Brittney Griner freed by Moscow in exchange for the U.S. releasing long-jailed arms dealer Viktor Bout, whose illicit deeds earned him the nickname,“the Merchant of Death.”
The original article contains 749 words, the summary contains 198 words. Saved 74%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!