During a press conference Thursday, Price was asked to elaborate on President Biden’s remarks from a day earlier, when he said he was optimistic Russia would be more willing to talk The release of Griner now that the midterm elections are over. WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner stands inside a defendant’s cage in a courtroom in Khimki, Russia, just outside Moscow, on August 4, 2022. (Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool Photo via AP) “Well, the fact is, and what the president was alluding to, is the fact that the Russians so far have not engaged with the seriousness of purpose in the constructive approach that we would like to have seen. We tabled this substantive proposal, as Secretary [of State Antony] “Blinken announced several months ago now, the release of Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner,” Price said. PRESIDENT BIDEN HOPE RUSSIA WILL BE MORE WILLING TO NEGOTIATE BRITTNEY GRINER’S PERFORMANCE AFTER INTERIM He continued: “The fact that Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner remain behind bars — Brittney Griner for about 10 months now, Paul Whelan for more than three years now — is a testament to the fact that this process has not progressed. as fast as we would. I liked it. You heard us say this from our end. This process was not static. We filed this substantial proposal. We had discussions with the Russians. These discussions are ongoing. We continue to look for ways that we can secure the release of Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner as soon as possible so that they can be returned to their loved ones here in the United States.” Price declined to comment further on the president’s remarks about the midterm elections, but added that the US continued to “press (the Russians) to engage seriously and in good faith with the initial proposal that we put forward.” WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner is escorted out of a courtroom after a hearing in Khimki, Russia, just outside Moscow, on August 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko) According to Griner’s lawyers, she left a detention center outside Moscow on Friday, but her exact location is unknown. According to the Associated Press, transfers to penal colonies, usually in remote areas of Russia, can last days or even weeks with little or no contact. Griner was arrested by Russian law enforcement at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport on February 17 for illegal possession of cannabis. She was found guilty in a Russian court on August 4 and sentenced to nine years in prison. CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM Price said Thursday that the White House had not been informed of Griner’s transfer. “Unfortunately, it has become standard practice on the part of the Russian Federation not to notify us in advance when … American citizens in detention are transferred from one detention center to another … We received no warning. After all, we had seen press reports and we are cooperating very closely with Brittney Griner’s representatives and continue to do so.As soon as we learned of her transfer, we formally requested from the Russian government, we asked for more information about her transfer,” he said. Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, sits inside a defendant’s cage in a courtroom in Khimki, Russia, just outside Moscow, on August 4, 2022. (Reuters/Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool ) CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “We’re also committed to doing everything we can to make sure her conditions are as safe, as healthy as they can be during this time. That’s something we do for all detained American citizens in Russia and really worldwide.” Russia continued to warn the US to conduct all prisoner exchange negotiations “in silence under a tight lid on any information.”
