Lavrov’s remarks came a day after Griner was sentenced to nine years in prison on drug charges seen as a ploy to demand the exchange of high-profile Russians to US prison, including arms dealer Victor Butt. “We are ready to discuss the matter [of a swap]but this should be done through the channel approved by the presidents, Putin and Biden,” Lavrov said during a press conference in Cambodia. He referred to a backchannel set up by Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin, saying “no matter who says what in public, that channel remains relevant.” That backchannel appeared to have succeeded in arranging the release of Trevor Reed, a former Marine who had been held in Russia for more than two years before being swapped in April for Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot held for more than a decade on drug-trafficking charges . But Lavrov also warned that Russia would not respond to “loudpeak diplomacy”, demanding that any negotiations be conducted discreetly. “If this is another case of the Americans resorting to public diplomacy and strong statements about their pending steps, it is their business, or should I even say their problem, because the Americans often fail to keep their agreement to do calm, professional work,” he said. Griner and her legal team tried to steer clear of politics during her trial. “I know everyone keeps talking about ‘political pawn’ and ‘politics,’ but I hope that’s far from this room,” Griner said in a closing statement Thursday. Lavrov said he had not discussed the exchange issue with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who was also attending the ASEAN summit in Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on a possible exchange for Bout, the arms dealer. “These exchanges will never happen if we start discussing any nuances of the exchange in the press,” he told reporters on Friday.
