Billionaire arms dealer Viktor Bout has spoken out about his 2022 prisoner exchange for WNBA player Brittney Griner, calling it "literally some kind of insult."
Bout was released from an American prison in December 2022 in exchange for Griner's freedom, after Griner was found guilty of drug smuggling with criminal intent and sentenced to nine years in prison in a Russian court in August 2022.
Bout was reportedly back in business, caught selling $10 million in arms to Houthi rebels in Yemen in 2024.
Bout joined Tucker Carlson's podcast from Moscow on Tuesday to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war and looming escalations.
During the interview, Carlson asked Bout for his take on Biden's failed 2022 prisoner swap, and he responded with fire, saying he expected a much higher threshold to be met.
"At least they could exchange Paul Whelan, which I was expecting," he added, referencing the US Marine who spent nearly six years in Russian prison during a 16-year sentence on false espionage charges. He was finally freed in 2024, nearly two years after Griner.
Bout claimed that Biden's administration had no choice but to trade him for Griner due to pressure from the LGBTQ community and NBA fans.
"If not for NBA fans, who put a lot of pressure on the Biden administration, this maybe was the only choice," he said.
Bout further stated that the Democrats put themselves in a position where they "can't even move, can't do nothing" because they bowed down to the LGBTQ agenda.
"You better do what they want, you have no choice," he added.
