INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Marine Paul Whelan says he feels "abandoned" and betrayed by his country after being imprisoned in Russia on espionage charges, the BBC said
in an interview published Wednesday.Whelan, 53, has been behind bars since 2018 and is serving a 16-year sentence for spying, a charge the
notorious for its harsh jails.Whelan has been left out of recent prisoner swaps negotiated between Russia and the United States."They've
They've kind of just left me in the dust
And at this point, this juncture, it's very concerning."Whelan, who also holds U.K., Irish and Canadian passports, worked in security for a
vehicle parts company when he was arrested in Moscow in 2018.He has always asserted that the evidence against him was falsified.He told the
BBC that he spends his days stitching work overalls and hats in a prison factory, and that his unheated barracks have black mold on the
walls.In November, Whelan's family said he had been "hit in the face" by a new prisoner, breaking his glasses.Russia and the United States
accuse each other of detaining the other's nationals for political purposes.Earlier in December, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he
wanted Moscow and Washington to reach a solution to release Whelan and detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.On Dec
14, a court in Moscow ruled that Gershkovich, who previously worked for AFP, be held in detention until Jan
30.Gershkovich, 32, was arrested on spying allegations during a reporting trip at the end of March in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg.He,
government have all rejected the spying allegations
He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted."There are contacts on this issue and dialogue is ongoing, but it's not straightforward,"
Putin said during his end-of-year press conference on Dec
14."I hope we will find a solution
side should also hear us and make a decision that will suit the Russian Federation."The U.S
State Department said Russia has so far refused all U.S
offers for the release of Gershkovich and Whelan.
