Brittney Griner

The US and Russia have indicated they are ready to hold talks over a prisoner swap, a day after basketball star Brittney Griner was convicted of drug ...

Earlier Friday, a US State Department official told reporters there had been no "serious response" from Russia on a proposed swap. Prior to the verdict on Thursday, Griner apologized to the court and asked for leniency in an emotional speech. And we'll be pursuing that," Blinken told reporters at a press briefing.

The White House has urged Russia to accept its offer of a deal for the release of Griner and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan.

That means she truly is terrified that she may never see us again. You know, I share those same sentiments," Cherelle said. Blinken has said Washington put forward a "substantial proposal" for the exchange of Griner and Whelan. In a handwritten letter from Griner that was delivered to the White House last month, the WNBA player wrote how terrified she is that she may be imprisoned in Russia "forever." The White House has urged Russia to accept its offer of a deal for the release of Griner and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges. Russia said Friday it was "ready to discuss" a prisoner swap with Washington at the presidential level, a day after the drug conviction of U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner.

Brittney Griner, the Phoenix Mercury star, was convicted on drug charges in Russia. Hours later, her teammates had a game. “Nobody even wanted to play today ...

In May, the U.S. State Department said that it had determined that Griner was “wrongfully detained” and that its officials would work to free her. The Mercury lost the game, 77-64, with an 18-0 Sun run in the third and fourth quarters that put the game out of reach. “We’ll wake up tomorrow, and B.G. will still be in a Russian jail,” Nygaard said. Mercury players donned the “We are BG” shirts in pregame warm-ups, as did the Connecticut coaching staff and several Sun players. “It was like, ‘Dang, we did that, and now I got to go play basketball; my friend is still locked up overseas,’” Jones said. Fans chanted “We are B.G.” and “Bring her home.” They watched with tear-filled eyes as Griner fought through her own tears and pleaded with a Russian court not to “end her life” for an “honest mistake.” Griner was sentenced to nine years in a Russian penal colony and fined 1 million rubles, or about $16,000. So to see it happen to one of my teammates and be so close to it and understand that it could’ve been me, it puts it into perspective.” How are we even supposed to approach the game and approach the court with a clear mind when the whole group is crying before the game?” “It was like you’re waiting for a bomb to drop,” Mercury guard Diamond DeShields said. Griner has been detained in Russia since Feb. 17 after customs officials said they found hashish oil, a cannabis derivative, in Griner’s luggage at an airport near Moscow when she was traveling to the country to play for UMMC Yekaterinburg, a professional women’s basketball team. The most atypical moment of the night for Nygaard happened moments before tipoff, as the lights dimmed and players, coaches and referees locked arms in solidarity for 42 seconds — matching the number of Griner’s jersey.

Brittney Griner, who was in Russia to play for a local team during the WNBA off-season, was detained over vape carriages containing cannabis oil in her ...

The weapons: Ukraine is making use of weapons such as Javelin antitank missiles and Switchblade “kamikaze” drones, provided by the United States and other allies. Russia has used an array of weapons against Ukraine, some of which have drawn the attention and concern of analysts. Russia appears set to resume ground offensives, with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu telling troops on Saturday to intensify attacks “in all operational sectors” of Ukraine.

A Russian court found Brittney Griner guilty on drug smuggling and possession charges. She was sentenced to more than nine years in prison.

After Griner received nine-year prison sentence on drug charges, Sergei Lavrov warns Russia won't tolerate 'megaphone diplomacy'

“These swaps will never happen if we start discussing any nuances of the exchange in the press,” he told reporters on Friday. “I know everybody keeps talking about ‘political pawn’ and ‘politics’, but I hope that is far from this courtroom,” Griner said in a closing statement on Thursday. But Lavrov also warned that Russia would not respond to “megaphone diplomacy”, demanding that any negotiations be carried out discreetly.

Justin Bieber is among famous faces expressing shock and dismay at the imprisonment of US basketball player Brittney Griner in Russia.

“Damn. Heartbreaking.” “The Russian judge ignored everything Britney Griner had stated,” she tweeted. Actress Farrow said the news was “heartbreaking”.

The detained WNBA star Brittney Griner apologized and asked for leniency in an emotional speech to a Russian courtroom in her drug-smuggling trial Thursday ...

Blagovolina also told CNN her team's experts identified "a few defects" in the machines used to measure the substance. Those rights would include access to an attorney once she was detained and the right to know what she was suspected of. "To hear her words and her apologies. Boykov also argued Griner had no opportunity to properly examine the court documents. All this confirms the complete absence of intent in her actions, Blagovolina argued. "What Vladimir Putin is trying to do is basically drive up the bargaining price of Ms. Griner." Near the end of the tribute, spectators started chanting, "Bring her home! We are BG," the statement reads. He said the US is working to bring home Griner and Paul Whelan, an American citizen who has been held by Russia for alleged espionage since 2018. The defense team is hopeful that Griner will be able to talk to her family next week. Blagovolina added that Griner will return to the detention center where she is being held. Judge Anna Sotnikova of the Khimki city court delivered the sentence and fined Griner 1 million rubles, or about $16,400.

Griner sentenced and fined 1m roubles in politically charged verdict that could lead to prisoner swap with the US.

“I never meant to put in jeopardy the Russian population. “I never meant to hurt anybody,” Griner said in her closing statement. He claimed that the US said Russia offered a trade for Bout in 2020 shortly after Whelan’s conviction on spying charges. US officials say Russia wants to swap Griner and Paul Whelan, a former US marine arrested on spying charges in 2020, for the convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout. The exchange at an airfield in Turkey recalled a cold war thriller, as the two men walked past each other to board planes back to their respective countries. Griner’s defence team said they were “disappointed” by the verdict and would appeal.

MOSCOW — A Russian court has found Brittney Griner guilty on drug smuggling and possession charges. The widely expected verdict comes after a monthlong ...

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Griner, 31, admitted possessing cannabis oil but told the court she made an "honest mistake". But the court convicted her of smuggling and possessing narcotics, ...

"It's a serious proposal. When we saw Brittney on Tuesday, we told her, 'See you on Thursday'. She said, 'See you on doomsday'. So it looks like she was right." We urge them to accept it. Griner also said she had received neither an explanation of her rights nor access to a lawyer in the initial hours of her detention, and that she had to use a translation app on her phone to communicate. "She can hardly talk. She had come to Russia to play club basketball during the US off-season.

Griner said she had no intent to break Russian law by bringing vape cartridges containing cannabis oil into Moscow.

They urged Washington to discuss the issue through “quiet diplomacy without releases of speculative information”. She declined to elaborate. The Lavrov-Blinken call marked the highest-level known contact between Washington and Moscow since Russia sent troops into Ukraine more than five months ago. She said she used it only in Arizona, where medical marijuana is legal. Griner told the court: “I want to apologise to my teammates, my club, my fans and the city of (Yekaterinburg) for my mistake that I made and the embarrassment that I brought on them. “I want to also apologise to my parents, my siblings, the Phoenix Mercury organisation back at home, the amazing women of the WNBA, and my amazing spouse back at home.”

Conviction of Olympic champion for drug possession denounced as 'unacceptable' by Joe Biden.

When she gave evidence in her trial July 7th, Griner said: “I would like to plead guilty on the charges against me. Cherelle Griner, who also spoke with vice-president Kamala Harris, later said she was “grateful to the both of them for the time they spent with me and for the commitment they expressed to getting BG home”. She told the court she was aware cannabis oil was outlawed in Russia and had not intended to break the law nor had planned “to smuggle anything into Russia”. In later evidence, she described a confusing scene while being held at the airport, saying an interpreter provided by authorities translated only a fraction of what was being said to her and that officials told her to sign documents, but “no one explained any of it to me”. She also said she was not informed of her rights. Before the unusually swift verdict, an emotional Griner apologised to her family, teammates and the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, where she plays during the WNBA offseason, “for my mistake that I made and the embarrassment that I brought on them”. “I call on Russia to release her immediately so she can be with her wife, loved ones, friends, and teammates,” he said, adding that he would continue to work to bring home Griner and Paul Whelan, an American imprisoned in Russia on an espionage conviction.