Ukraine overview: Blinken wants to talk to Lavrov – Ukraine offers EU electricity

ZFor the first time since Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine began, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wants to speak to his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov. Blinken said at a press conference in Washington on Wednesday that the phone call “in the coming days” should be about the release of American basketball player Brittney Griner, who was imprisoned in Moscow, and her compatriot Paul Whelan. The US Secretary of State also wants to address compliance with the new agreement on the export of grain from Ukraine.

Blinken said the US government “put a substantial proposal on the table” for Moscow “weeks ago” to secure the release of Griner and Whelan. He did not give details of the offer. There is speculation that the two could be traded for Russian arms dealer Viktor But, who is in prison in the United States.

The National Security Council’s communications director, John Kirby, said on Wednesday they hoped Russia would accept the deal. The decision to accept such an offer was not easy. The US government made the proposal public “so the world knows how serious the United States is about bringing our citizens home.”

Russia: So far no initiative from the US side

The Russian Foreign Ministry announced in the evening that there was no official request for such a talk. Instead of using the megaphone for diplomacy, Washington should stick to diplomatic practice, Moscow said.

US basketball player Brittney Griner, who is in prison in Russia, was arrested on February 17 at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport for a drug-related offense. When her luggage was checked in February, she is said to have had so-called vape cartridges and a small amount of hash oil with her. A court near Moscow is hearing the case. Washington criticizes that Griner is wrongly detained. She herself admitted to having had drugs in her luggage. However, on medical advice, she only used medical marijuana as a painkiller.

Paul Whelan, who has multiple citizenships, was arrested in Russia in December 2018 and accused of espionage. In June 2020, he was sentenced to 16 years in prison with the possibility of a stay in a labor camp.

Relations between Moscow and Washington have long been shattered. At a summit in Geneva in mid-June last year, US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed a possible exchange of prisoners, according to the Kremlin. In April, following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, the US and Russia swapped Russian citizen Konstantin Yaroshenko for US citizen Trevor Reed.

Grain agreement to be implemented

Blinken announced that they would also talk to Lavrov about compliance with the new agreement on the protected export of grain from Ukraine. “The agreement is a positive step forward, but there is a difference between an agreement on paper and an agreement in practice,” said Blinken.

On Friday, wartime opponents Ukraine and Russia signed an agreement with the UN and Turkey to allow grain exports from three Ukrainian ports across the Black Sea. According to Ukrainian sources, more than 20 million tons of grain from last year’s harvest are still waiting to be exported. Port operations were suspended for security reasons after the Russian invasion at the end of February. Ukraine also mined its coast to protect against Russian landings. The ports have since resumed work.