To the Editor,
President Biden announcing the agreement to exchange former Soviet military translator turned “Merchant of Death” arms dealer Victor Bout, one of the world’s deadliest arms dealers, for WNBA star Brittany Griner reminds me of a game of chess. He has served more than 12 of 25 years in prison for crimes, including the targeting of American citizens. Bout was the second most wanted man in the world after Osama bin Ladan. Russian President Vladimir Putin exchanged a pawn (Griner) and got a king (Bout).
If Biden knew how to play chess, he would have exchanged a king for a king and made it a higher priority to obtain the release of former Marine Paul Whelan instead. Whelan was arrested in Moscow in 2018 on espionage charges. He was subsequently found guilty in a closed trial and has served three years of a 16-year prison sentence. Contrast that with Griner, who has been detained for nine months and just began serving her 9-year prison sentence.
In 2020, she was quoted as saying, “I didn’t think the national anthem should be played before WNBA games and would not be on the floor if it was.” Former chief of operations for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration told “60 Minutes” in 2010, “Victor Bout, in my eyes, is one of the most dangerous men on the face of the Earth.”
The exchange of Bout for Whelan would have been a better one. Once again, Putin has played Biden for a fool.
Larry Penner
