Tajik-born arms dealer Viktor Bout recently broke his silence on his exchange with the cannabis-smoking WNBA star Brittney Griner, revealing his words to the sapphic athlete in a new interview with ESPN.
Griner, who had been detained in Russia for approximately 10 months, was released in a swap for Bout. The latter had been serving a 25-year sentence in a U.S. federal prison after being found guilty of conspiring to kill Americans, a charge linked to his support for a Colombian terrorist group.
Bout’s notorious reputation as the “Merchant of Death” stems from his operations of Soviet-era cargo planes that transported arms to conflict zones in Africa. HIs infamous life story inspired the movie “Lord of War,” starring Nicolas Cage. Despite his reputation as an international rogue, Bout defended his actions and lambasted the charges against him.
“Many people would say ‘for what? Just for talking? Are you serious?’” Bout said in the aforementioned. “There is not even a proper translation to Russian of the term of conspiracy. We don’t have such even the legal term. So, this is the same kind of outrage in Russia about my case and about many other cases,” Bout said.
The decision to swap Griner for Bout sparked controversy among Americans. Critics argued that the U.S. conceded too much for the basketball player’s release. Griner had previously faced backlash for her comments on the national anthem, although she later revised her views. The U.S. administration, particularly President Biden, faced scrutiny for not including Paul Whelan in the exchange. Whelan, a former U.S. Marine, remains imprisoned on espionage charges, which he refutes, and is serving a 16-year sentence. The severity of Griner’s nine-year sentence for drug-related offenses also raised eyebrows.
Bout provided heretofore unheard details about the moment of the exchange, bringing the mustachioed gunrunner in contact with the stoner-giantess of the Phoenix Mercury.
“So, they put the two planes together, give us some instruction, went down, and here you are,” Bout said. “Somebody showed up from Russian side saying, ‘Hi, is everything fine?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ So he identified me, and then couple minutes afterwards, the exchange literally happened.”
“Admittedly, I was a little shocked seeing her without her signature braids. She was way taller than me. I just shake the hand, I said to her, ‘I wish you good luck.’ And we both went to our planes,” he said.
Bout expressed his willingness to discuss the swap, emphasizing his desire for improved U.S.-Russia relations.
“I do believe we have a common ground to have at least normal relation between our countries, but I hope that one of these days, we have a perfect and good economic and people-to-people relation again,” he said.
Griner continues to excel in her basketball career, earning her eighth All-Star title this season. Her current statistics include an average of 17.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game.
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