Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine who has been wrongly detained in Russia since 2018, urged the Biden administration to push “just a little faster” for his release.
Whelan, who was detained in a Moscow hotel in December 2018 and is serving a 16-year sentence for the crime of espionage, said he stays “confident” but anxious.
“Daily I keep a positive attitude and the confidence that the wheels are turning.” – Whelan, 53, he told CNN in a telephone conversation from a POW camp in Mordovia.
“I just wish they’d change just a little faster,” added the director of corporate security at BorgWarner, Michigan.
Whelan has steadfastly maintained his innocence.
The US State Department recently told the Wall Street Journal that a prisoner exchange with Russia can be the most realistic route to freeing Whelan, his reporter Evan Gershkovich and other Americans.
![Russia detained Paul Whelan behind bars](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/NYPICHPDPICT000011544448.jpg?w=1024)
But after trading infamous Russian arms dealer Viktor But for WNBA star Britney Griner in December, the US has apparently been left with no comparable trade candidate for Whelan and Gershkovich.
One other American, Marine veteran Trevor Reed, was also released in a prisoner exchange last 12 months.
Whelan told CNN that the Journal’s detention made him fear for his future.
“It’s an enormous concern for me and my family,” he said.
![Russian detained Paul Whelan](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/NYPICHPDPICT000010244839-3.jpg?w=1024)
But he told CNN he was more confident about his prospects now than when he last spoke to the network in December after Griner was fired.
“I have been told I won’t be left behind, and I have been told that while Evan’s case is a priority, mine can also be a priority and individuals are aware of the incontrovertible fact that that is having a really negative impact on me and my family,” Whelan said on Sunday.
“I feel that my life mustn’t be considered less priceless or vital than others which were mentioned before. And I feel there are people in DC who feel the same way and are moving towards a compromise and an answer to this issue as soon as they’ll,” he continued.
The Canadian-born man, who also holds British and Irish citizenship, told CNN he had “the usual pains of forced labor… and poor living conditions”.
“It is a each day reminder of where I’m and the way long I have been here,” he told the network.
Whelan cited President Biden’s public statements and the presence of his sister Elizabeth Whelan at a UN Security Council meeting chaired by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as reasons for renewed optimism.
![President Biden](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/NYPICHPDPICT000011491472.jpg?w=1024)
“I’ll say that President Biden’s comments made at the press corps luncheon were very, very encouraging,” he said, referring to the commander-in-chief’s remarks that he and his administration wouldn’t stop fighting for Whelan “until we catch him.” House.”
Whelan said the Russians allowed him to watch Biden’s statements at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and his sister’s speech at the United Nations because they were trying to portray them as “Americans begging for the return of considered one of their people.”
“It was funny because we were standing here in the prison watching TV and watching my sister speak at the UN and everybody was hypnotized that something like this might occur,” Whelan told CNN.
![Wall Street Journal correspondent Evan Gershkovich](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/NYPICHPDPICT000010802389.jpg?w=1024)
“And I said, ‘You recognize, in America and Canada, England, Ireland, that is something we do. We’ve got the freedom to speak and speak in a spot like the United Nations.” But that is unprecedented. And you understand, thanks to everyone involved in making it occur,” he said.
Whelan also appealed directly to Biden.
“Mr. President, I actually have been held hostage for over 52 months and the only crime I actually have committed in Russia is being an American citizen,” he said.
![WNBA star Brittney Griner](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/NYPICHPDPICT000011531173.jpg?w=1024)
“Freedom just isn’t free, it has a price. But the lack of freedom is much more costly, and I bear that cost day by day that Russia holds me. Please keep your guarantees and commitments, truly make my life a priority and produce me home. Thanks very much,” Whelan said.
Meanwhile, Whelan’s brother David said he was “very glad to hear the positive attitude” in his brother’s voice.
“I feel we’re concerned about his mental health and morale and his ability to go on a each day basis until something is sorted out, so all of it sounded very positive,” CNN’s Jim Acosta told after the interview aired.
“I feel we have been waiting a protracted time since Secretary (Anthony) Blinken commented that a considerable offer was made to the Kremlin to which the Kremlin didn’t respond. We have been waiting months,” he continued.
“I’m sure they remember that Paul has to spend day by day waiting for them to act, but I wish they’d act faster, more decisively, and produce Paul and other Americans home,” he added.