Donald Trump shades President Biden over prisoner swap as Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich regained Freedom.
It is no news that the former president of the United States, Donald Trump, is critical of his successor, President Joe Biden.
Donald Trump is always very vocal when it comes to criticising the opposition, President Joe Biden for his failure to secure freedom for the two Americans, Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich, illegally detained in Russia.
However, after Thursday’s prisoner swap between the Governments of America and Russia which saw the two Americans and two other Russians detained by America released, the criticism still will not stop.
Jake Sullivan, White House national security adviser, disclosed to the press that there was neither cash involved during the exchange nor any relief of various sanctions imposed on Russia.
But reacting to Sullivan’s claim in a post on his verified social media account by questioning the denial and insincerity of the security adviser without presenting a valid point to counter the claim.
Former President of the United States.
Photo Credit – Washington Post
The former President and Republican presidential candidate asked, “Are we also paying them cash?
Are they giving us cash (Please withdraw that question, because I’m sure the answer is NO)?” he said.
He furthered by giving an invalidated opinion that the United States government has paid Iran multi-billion dollars.
“Just curious because we never make good deals, at anything, but especially hostage swaps.
Our ‘negotiators’ are always an embarrassment to us!” he added in his post.
With baseless suggestion, Trump also claimed that cash exchange was also involved in the prisoner swap which involved the United States and Russia.
However, Joe Biden lashed out at the former President when asked to address Trump’s claim that cash was involved in the exchange of the prisoners during an interview on the “Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show.”
“Why didn’t he do it when he was president?” Biden taunted.
Meanwhile, the Republican nominee continued to nail the deal amidst his refusal to take in that money was not involved during an interview with Fox Business’s Maria Bartiromo on Friday. Donald Trump Shades President Biden Over Prisoner Swap
“It would have never happened with us if I was president,” Trump said of Gershkovich’s detention.
“The Russians made a great deal. I’m not going to be criticizing it, because it’s good to have them home, but they got a phenomenal deal. And that sets a very bad precedent. Very, very bad precedent,” he added.
Photo Credit – Getty Images
It should be recalled that the illegal detention of Whelan on Russian soil started in Trump’s administration in 2018.
Even after it being criticised and described as “unlawful” by his cabinet member and the then Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Donald Trump did not make any move to get his release nor even mention his name during any public address when he was the President.
Paul Whelan’s brother, David Whelan, stated on Thursday that his family had been “discouraged from speaking out about Paul’s case.”
“Those first years were hard when the Trump Administration ignored Paul’s wrongful detention, and it was media attention that helped to finally create critical mass and awareness within the U.S. government,” he said.
It is to be noted that Paul Whelan, while facing trial, implored the then president, Donald Trump, for help.
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In his remark, Paul Whelan, an ex-Marine held as a spy in Moscow, said, “Mr. President, we cannot keep America great unless we aggressively protect and defend Americans wherever they are in the world,” he said in June 2019.
Instead, in December 2022, Trump would react by mentioning Whelan in reaction to Biden’s arrangement to free United States Basketball player, Brittney Griner from Russian detention.
It is no news that the former president of the United States, Donald Trump, is critical of his successor, President Joe Biden.
“Why wasn’t former Marine Paul Whelan included in this one-sided transaction? He would have been let out for the asking.” Trump reacted in his post.
We need to recall that the exchange which took place in December 2022 involved Russian arms dealer, Viktor Bout for Brittney Griner.
Donald Trump claimed that he rebuffed a swap deal with Russia in the Whelan-Bout exchange because he perceived Bout to be a “merchant of death.”
“I turned down a deal with Russia for a one-on-one swap of the so-called Merchant of Death for Paul Whelan.
I wouldn’t have made the deal for a hundred people in exchange for someone that has killed untold numbers of people with his arms deals,” he said.
The claim did not sit well with the Whelans which led David Whelan to hit out at the former president in his post on X, formerly, Twitter, for his consistent use of his brother’s name.
“Former President Trump appears to have mentioned my brother, Paul Whelan’s wrongful detention more in the last 24 hours than he did in the 2 years of his presidency in which Paul was held hostage by Russia.
Photo Credit – New York Times
“I don’t suggest he cares now any more than he did then (zero),” David Whelan said in the December 2022 post.
More than a year following the arrest of Gershkovich, Trump ceased to say anything about Gershkovich’s situation until an interview with Time Magazine on 2nd April 2024.
“The reporter (Trump avoided calling Gershkovich’s name) should be released and he will be released,” Trump said.
“I don’t know if he’s going to be released under Biden.”
In May, Trump revealed in his social media post that Gershkovich would be released just after the election but before he assumed office and continued by saying, “Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, will do that for me but not for anyone else,” he concluded in his post
The June presidential debate was greeted with yet another criticism from Trump, criticising President Joe Biden over economic wastage.
He stated that Putin is making jest of Biden by asking billions of dollars in exchange for the reporter.
He then claimed that Putin could have released Gershkovich a long time ago but Biden’s wasteful spending had prompted the Russian President to keep asking for billions of dollars for his release.
“He should have had him out a long time ago. But Putin is probably asking for billions and billions of dollars because this guy pays it every time,” Trump disclosed.
Donald Trump Shades President Biden Over Prisoner Swap