(WWJ) Russian President Vladimir Putin says he want to make a deal with the U.S. to send imprisoned Novi, Michigan, resident Paul Whelan home.
CBS News reports as part of his year-end news conference in Moscowm Putin described negotiations as "not easy" and said "we're not refusing to return them" — referring to Whelan as well as and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
Whelan, 53, was detained by Russian authorities in 2018 and sentenced to 16 years in prison after being convicted of espionage.
While Whelan has served five years in the prison, the U.S. government says Russian officials have never publicly presented any evidence that Whelan was working as a spy.
In May of 2023r, the Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. was engaging "with countries that hold Russian citizens in custody, and is open to incorporating those prisoners in a deal" to free Gershkovich and other Americans detained in Russia, including Whelan.
"U.S. officials see a prisoner exchange with Moscow as the most likely path for the U.S. to win freedom for the two men, both of whom it deems to be wrongfully detained," WSJ reported at the time.
The U.S. had also attempted to secure Whelan's release a year ago when it brokered a deal to exchange infamous Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout for American basketball star Brittney Griner, who was detained for nearly 10 months on drug-related charges, but Russia refused to release Whelan.