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US Department of Justice declines to comment on speculations about prisoner exchanges

The US national's attorney said Monday that a deal to swap Paul Whelan for Russians Viktor Bout or Konstantin Yaroshenko incarcerated in American prisons could be looked into after the sentence came into effect

WASHINGTON, June 15./TASS/. The US Department of Justice declines to comment on guesswork concerning the possibility of exchanging Russian and US inmates in the light of the jail sentence for espionage passed on Paul Whelan on Monday.

"We decline comment. Thank you," Nicole Navas Oxman, Senior Communications Advisor for International Law Enforcement/Spokesperson in the Department of Justice, told TASS on Monday when asked whether the US administration was looking into the option of exchanging inmates in Russian and US jails.

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Spy swap in the offing? Exchange for Whelan to be considered after sentence, says lawyer

Meanwhile, US Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan said on Monday that he was in no position to discuss prisoner exchanges. "Paul has now just become a convict in the Russian system. I’m advocating for justice for Paul. . . . What we’re looking for is not an exchange, we’re looking for justice for Paul Whelan."

Earlier, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov emphasized that the charges brought against Whelan were "proven in and accepted by the court" and that he could not be considered as a political prisoner. At the same time, Peskov declined to comment on the court’s decision and Whelan’s future.

On Monday, the Moscow City Court found Whelan guilty of spying against Russia and sentenced him to 16 years in prison. US citizen Paul Whelan, who also holds British, Canadian and Irish citizenship, was detained by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) on December 28, 2018 in Moscow while on a spy mission. A criminal investigation was launched against him on espionage charges carrying a punishment of up to 20 years behind bars.

Whelan’s attorney Vladimir Zherebenkov told TASS on Monday that a deal to swap Paul Whelan for Russian nationals Viktor Bout or Konstantin Yaroshenko incarcerated in American prisons could be looked into after the sentence came into effect.

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