By Erik Dolson
Basketball player Brittney Griner is flying home to the U.S. today. Many are cheering Griner’s release from Russian prison after she was convicted of smuggling cannabis oil (for personal use) into that country. Her freedom was secured in a trade for Viktor Bout, a Russian international arms dealer with ties to the Kremlin.
I’m not among those celebrating for several reasons.
First, Griner knowingly broke Russian law. The penalties for this were known to her. I’ve not read that she was set up and the drugs were planted, though that remains possible. While her sentence was too harsh by U.S. standards, it’s a good thing she wasn’t caught in a country where such transgressions are punished by quick death.
If there were no costs to her release, then by all means I’m glad she’s on her way back to her family the U.S.
But that’s not the case. In exchange for Griner, United States released one of the most dangerous men in the world, one responsible for thousands of deaths, a man known as “The Merchant of Death,” a man who could have been an intelligence asset at some point. In return, the U.S. gets … a basketball player.
Finally, at one point in time U.S. policy was stated to be “We don’t negotiate with terrorists.” Russia has proven itself to be terrorist state.
Griner’s arrest may have been no more than state-sponsored kidnapping. Rewarding kidnappers guarantees more kidnapping, either by the original perpetrators or by copycats.
Well here we go again another bad trade deal. Remember Bowe Bergdal for 5 taliban in gitmo.