Paul Whelan, who has been imprisoned in Russia for four years on charges of espionage, reportedly told his family Monday that he feels “abandoned” by the U.S. in the wake of the Kremlin’s latest arrest of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, also for espionage. “His resilience is shaken,” said Whelan’s brother David in an email. “Paul seems rattled like never before, understandably apprehensive that the U.S. government will choose not to bring him home again, now that there is another American wrongfully detained by the Kremlin.” Whelan, 53, a businessman and former Marine, was given a 16-year sentence in 2020. Since his arrest in 2018, the U.S. has negotiated the release of former Marine Trevor Reed and WNBA star Brittney Griner. David told The Daily Beast in an email that he’s worried momentum for his brother’s release has waned, and he’s “not particularly” hopeful that media attention this week will change that. “We have not heard anything of substance [from the State Department lately],” he said. “Secretary of State Blinken has said that the U.S. government has made a substantial offer [for Paul] and encouraged the Kremlin to accept it. But we do not know what it consists of nor what is the likelihood that the Kremlin will accept it.”
