An embassy official gained consular access to Griner on Tuesday, Price said, the first official government access granted to Griner since she was detained by Russia from mid-February.
“We’ve been able to verify her condition, we’ll continue to work very closely with her legal team, with her wider network, to make sure she’s being treated fairly,” Price told CNN’s Poppy Harlow.
“Our official has found that Britney Griner is in good health and we will continue to do our best to ensure that she is treated fairly during this trial,” he added.
Griner, a two-time Olympian and WBNA Phoenix Mercury player, was arrested in February at a Moscow airport and charged by Russian authorities with smuggling large amounts of drugs. – a crime punishable by imprisonment for up to 10 years.
Last week, a Moscow court extended Griner’s arrest until May 19, Russian news agency TASS reported. The investigation is ongoing and no trial date has yet been set, a source close to the situation told CNN last week. Griner’s legal team had access to her and were able to see her several times a week throughout her detention in Russia.
Earlier this week, U.S. Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan met with representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry on Monday and “demanded that the Russian government comply with international law and basic decency to allow consular access for all U.S. citizens detained in Russia, including in pre-trial detention.” – preliminary conclusion.
The Russian state agency TASS reported that the US consul did not visit Griner, despite the willingness of the Russian authorities to “create all conditions” for the visit.
But the U.S. embassy in Moscow said it “repeatedly requested” consular access to Griner and other detained American citizens “and was repeatedly and wrongfully denied access for months.” Russia also detained US citizens Paul Whelan and Trevor Reid.