National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Friday confirmed that Washington had discussed the prospect of a prisoner swap with the Kremlin to recover imprisoned Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich. During a White House press briefing, Sullivan stated that "there have been discussions, but those discussions have not produced a clear pathway." "We have said that we remain in contact with Russian authorities, at high levels, on these cases." Some have floated the prospect of trading imprisoned Russian alleged cybercriminal Vladimir Dunaev for Gershkovich. Russia previously traded WNBA star Brittney Griner, whom authorities had imprisoned on drug charges, for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Source: Wall Street Journal July 08, 2023 08:03 UTC