Paul Whelan's brother reveals Russia may be waiting for the US to capture a spy for a prisoner swap

The brother of a former Marine who remains in Russian captivity has suggested the Russian government may be waiting for the United States to capture a spy before a prisoner swap can happen.

Paul Whelan's family had been hoping that the Biden administration would be able to negotiate a deal with the Kremlin whereby both the former Marine and basketball star Brittney Griner would be released in exchange for a Russian arms dealer known as the 'Merchant of Death.'

But the United States government was only able to free Griner under a deal brokered with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and with the help of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Now, David Whelan says, his brother may be stuck in captivity for another 12 years in a Russian penal colony on spying charges American officials say are bogus.  

David Whelan, the brother of former Marine Paul Whelan, suggested in an interview with Good Morning America on Friday  that the Russian government may be waiting for the United States to capture a spy before it will conduct a prisoner exchange for his brother

Paul Whelan has been held at a Russian penal colony since December 2018, when he was arrested on a trip to Moscow

Paul Whelan has been held at a Russian penal colony since December 2018, when he was arrested on a trip to Moscow. He was convicted two years later on spying charges and was sentenced to 16 years in a maximum security jail.

He has since lost about 20 percent of his body weight, David revealed in an interview with Good Morning America on Friday, as his family continues to worry about his mental and physical health.

David went on to express his 'disappointment' in the news that his brother would not be freed as part of the deal to bring WNBA star Griner home, though he said he believes the Biden administration has 'done everything they can, and sometimes you have to try multiple times before you get to the goal you've set.' 

He told host Eva Pilgrim he continues to trust the United States government to bring his brother home, but noted: 'I think the challenge really is it's not clear what the Russians want.

'They have always wanted from Day One back in December 2018 to extort something from the US government,' David explained.

'But it has not been clear recently what they want any longer, so the US government is going to have to figure that out, and we will continue to support Paul as long as we can, as long as he's able to survive over there.'

David then posited that the Kremlin may be waiting for the United States or another western country to capture a Russian spy for a prisoner exchange.

'The Kremlin is fundamentally like a playground bully, so if you hit them three times, they'll hit you three times back,' he explained. 

'They like parity and they have labeled Paul a spy, so it may be that they're waiting until the US government — or somewhere in the west — a Russian spy is captured and they will attempt to do an exchange.'

He added that it costs the Russian government 'almost nothing to keep him in a labor colony for many years,' so they will be able to wait for the perfect opportunity for a prisoner swap. 

Paul Whelan, a former US Marine accused of spying and arrested in Russia, stands inside a defendants' cage during a hearing at a court in Moscow in 2019

Paul Whelan's elderly parents, age 83 and 85, call for his release in a family photo

David also spoke about the disappointment his family was feeling following Griner's release, saying they will continue to fight for his brother.

'The White House was very gracious in giving us a little bit of trust and letting us know in advance that the trade was going to happen, and that Paul wasn't coming home, so we were able to process a lot of the grief and disappointment privately and now we're back to work,' he revealed.

'I mean it's time to advocate again for Paul, and to continue to pressure the White  House and the US government to do what it can to get Russia to release Paul.'

aIK-17: The brutal Russian gulag where Whelan languishes

The exterior of IK-17 penal colony

Whelan is being held in penal colony IK-17, which is located in the remote Russian province of Mordovia. 

His family says conditions there are grim, and they fear for his safety. 

Whelan has said prison guards wake him every two hours at night, ripping off his blanket and taking his photo in a supposed measure to prevent escape.

Prisoners are forced to pay for their own supplies including toilet paper, toothpaste, and fresh food. 

He also revealed that his brother 'is very disappointed that he was left behind again,' noting that this is the second time now that 'an American has been released from Russia and that Paul didn't come home.

'I hope he understands that, you know, there are other factors that caused it to happen,' David said. 'But I think it must be very hard for his mental health and to figure out how he can continue to survive day to day with that sort of disappointment.'

Still, he says: 'There's always hope.

'We're a little disappointed right now to, I guess realize the US government isn't in a position where it knows what it's going to do next, other than continue its hard work, its efforts.

'But, you know, there's always hope.'

The interview came as his sister, Elizabeth, said she had doubted the Russian government would free her brother along with Brittney Griner.

'This is not an easy thing to solve,' she told CBS Mornings on Friday.

'We have a country, Russia, who is trying to cause trouble over here. They weren't going to, in my opinion, send both Paul and Brittney home at the same time and give the president the win,' Elizabeth explained.

As she said: 'The problem is that the foreign governments that are taking people like this, they're not taking them because of the specific person, they're taking them because they want to get back in some way at the United States.'

Elizabeth reiterated that she thought the charges against her brother are bogus, suggesting Russian authorities actually planted a USB drive on him they say contains state secrets before they arrested him.

'This is a story they have concocted, and they're trying to stick to the story to get leverage over the US.'

'But we need to figure out a way around that; I don't know what exactly what the solution is, I constantly lob crazy ideas at the people who are in charge of that, hoping that some of my ideas will spur them on to action that will actually result in Paul's release.' 

Elizabeth Whelan, Paul Whelan's sister, admitted she had doubts that her brother would be able to return home along with Brittney Griner

She reiterated in an interview with CBS Mornings on Friday that the espionage charges brought against her brother are bogus as she slammed conservatives who are criticizing the Biden administration for releasing Griner but not Whelan

 Elizabeth also slammed conservatives who are criticizing the Biden administration for freeing Griner — who was found guilty of bringing marijuana pens into the country — rather than Whelan, an ex-Marine.

'Where have all those people been for the past four years while my brother's been held? Where were their good ideas?' she asked, rhetorically. 'I hope they're sharing them with the National Security Council.'

She went on to say: 'I welcome anyone who wants to share their ideas — they can send them to me, I can pass them on.' 

Brittney Griner, a WNBA star, left, was released Thursday in exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, right, known as the 'Merchant of Death' 

Griner returned home on Friday after being previously pleading guilty to bringing cannabis products through Russian customs in February

Following the news of Griner's release Thursday, a number of Republicans spoke out about Whelan still being held in captivity.

Rep. Mike Waltz, a former Green Beret from Florida, asked: 'Where is US Marine Paul Whelan, who has been unjustly held by Russia for far longer? Celebrities over veterans?'

Republican leader Kevin McCarthy also said it was 'unconscionable' to leave behind Whelan: 'Merchant of Death – that's the nickname of the prisoner Biden returned to Putin. He was convicted of conspiring to kill American law enforcement.

'This is a gift to Vladimir Putin, and it endangers American lives. Leaving Paul Whelan behind for this is unconscionable,' he said.

Meanwhile, Rep. Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican and former Air Force pilot, tweeted: 'So a basketball star is released, we can celebrate, but what about Paul Whelan? An American unjustly detained for years.

'May not be high profile but he is innocent,' he said, adding: 'This is a dangerous road.' 

And on Friday, Musk joined the choir of those calling for justice for Whelan tweeting: 'Never leave a Marine behind. Never.' 

Republicans, including veterans Rep. Adam Kinzinger (left) and Rep. Mike Waltz, spoke out against Biden's release of Griner while leaving Whelan behind

New Twitter CEO Elon Musk also denounced the decision, tweeting Friday: 'Never leave a Marine behind. Never'

Whelan's family, though, has said his case is being treated differently than that of Griner because he is charged with espionage.

Griner, however, was serving a nine-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to bringing cannabis products through Russian customs in February. 

Biden was therefore able to work with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to help secure Griner's release in exchange for Viktor Bout, a notorious arms dealer who sold weaponry to rogue states, rebel groups and murderous warlords in Africa, Asia and South America.

Experts on Russian security services have hinted that Bout has ties to Russian intelligence. 

But the US president had been under escalating pressure to get Griner home, particularly after the recent resolution of her criminal case and her subsequent transfer to a penal colony.

He said from the White House on Thursday that the administration remains 'in close touch' with Whelan's family and commiserated with their 'mixed emotions' over Griner's homecoming.

'We'll keep negotiating in good faith for Paul's release - I guarantee that. I say that to the family. I guarantee you,' the president said.

'I urge Russia to do the same, to ensure Paul's health and humane treatment are maintained until we can bring him home. I don't want any Americans to sit wrongfully detained one extra day if we can bring that person home.'

The President made no mention of American Marc Fogel of Oklahoma, a teacher who is also detained in Russia on marijuana-related charges.

Asked directly about the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince's role in the negotiations, a senior administration official said: 'In the course of getting to this happy result with respect to Brittney, and in the course of working to secure the release of Paul, as we continue to do, we have and I'm sure we'll continue to lean on partners around the world to work this through with us, to give us their ideas, and to impress upon the Russians how important it is to us to resolve these sorts of cases.'

'And we appreciate when those partners do help us. And I'll leave it there.'

Reports that the Saudi prince helped broker the deal came two days after a US federal judge rejected a lawsuit against him and other Saudi officials over Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi's violent murder.

President Joe Biden addressed the nation from the White House on Thursday morning to discuss Brittney Griner's release as well as the conditions of Americans still detained abroad

Cherelle Griner, Brittney's wife, thanked the Biden administration for ending what she called 'the darkest moments of my life'

The Whelan family praised the Biden administration for securing Griner's release, but said in a statement they continue to worry about his well-being as his parents prepare to spend their fourth Christmas without their son

 David later released a statement from his family saying it was 'glad that Brittney Griner is on her way home,' but expressed disappointment that Paul remained imprisoned.

'Despite the possibility that there might be an exchange without Paul, our family is still devastated,' said David. 

'I can't even fathom how Paul will feel when he learns. Paul has worked so hard to survive nearly four years of this injustice,' he added.

'His hopes had soared with the knowledge that the US government was taking concrete steps for once towards his release. He'd been worrying about where he'd live when he got back to the US.' 

David went on to note that this year would mark the fourth Christmas that Paul's parents, age 83 and 85, had spent with their son in Russian prison. 

'The likelihood that our parents will see their son again diminishes each day his wrongful detention continues,' he wrote. 

'Increasingly, I worry that Paul himself won't survive 12 more years in a Russian labor colony. He has tried to stay healthy but one wonders how long that determination to endure can continue.' 

'I am so glad that Brittney Griner is on her way home,' David said. 'There is no greater success than for a wrongful detainee to be freed and for them to go home. 

'The Biden administration made the right decision to bring Ms. Griner home, and to make the deal that was possible, rather than waiting for one that wasn't going to happen.' 

But David added: 'As the use of wrongful detentions and hostage diplomacy continues around the globe, it's clear the US government needs to be more assertive. If bad actors like Russia are going to grab innocent Americans, the US needs a swifter, more direct response, and to be prepared in advance.'