Russian state media has released rare footage showing Paul Whelan inside a notorious prison camp, providing the first publicly available video images of the imprisoned American in more than three years.
Broadcast on Monday, the recording shows Whelan, a Marine veteran, wearing a black uniform and hat among other inmates in what appear to be various areas within IK-17, a maximum-security penal colony in Mordovia — a remote, wooded region of Russia.
It was not clear when the video was taken but it comes amid continuing, high-level U.S. efforts to get him freed.
In one scene, Whelan works at a sewing machine and speaks to a reporter, telling him "Sir, you understand when I say I can't do an interview, which means I can't answer any questions." Other shots show Whelan eating at a table and holding up what appears to be an identification card.
American Paul Whelan, who is being held in Russian jail, is seen here in these video grabs from RT, a pro-Russian news outlet.RT
MORE: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner Group leader killed in plane crash, buried in private funeral
The news segment, aired by Russia Today (RT) — a state-funded propaganda outlet — also appears to show security camera footage of Whelan meeting with diplomats through a glass window.
Whelan's twin brother David responded to the report, saying he sees "strength and determination and contempt" in Paul's face.
"Today was the first time I've seen what he really looks like since June 2020," David Whelan said in an email to ABC News. "So thank you, Russia Today, because although your reporting is the worst sort of propaganda and you are the mouthpiece for war criminals, at least I could see what Paul looks like after all of these years."
American Paul Whelan, who is being held in Russian jail, is seen here in these video grabs from RT, a pro-Russian news outlet.RT
MORE: Top CEOs call on Biden administration to address migrant influx in New York
It's unclear if Moscow intended to send any kind of message to the U.S. by allowing cameras inside the penal colony.
Negotiations aimed at freeing Whelan, who the U.S. considers to be wrongfully detained by Russia, have dragged on for years. In March, Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed that the administration had put forth what he called a "serious proposal" to Moscow for Whelan's freedom, but sources familiar with negotiations say Russia has shown no real interest in the offer.
Blinken spoke with Whelan by phone earlier this month. Sources familiar with the call say the secretary reassured him that the U.S. was doing everything it could to bring him home.
Paul Whelan, a former US marine accused of espionage and arrested in Russia in December 2018, stands inside a defendants’ cage as he waits to hear his verdict in Moscow, June 15, 2020.Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images, FILE
MORE: Blinken speaks to Paul Whelan, American wrongfully detained by Moscow, sources confirm
"It was reassuring to see that he remains — and this is to use his brother's words — 'unbowed,'" White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said about the video. "Paul continues to show tremendous courage, that does not change that his conservative circumstances are truly unacceptable, and we will continue to be very clear about that. Russia should release him immediately and that is something that again, we have been very consistent about."
Whelan was arrested in 2018 and charged with espionage — allegations Whelan and the U.S. say are completely fabricated.
After spending 18 months in pre-trial detention, Whelan was convicted by a Russian court in June 2020.
He is currently one of two Americans considered by the U.S. government to be wrongfully jailed by Moscow. The other is Evan Gershkovich — a Wall Street Journal reporter accused of espionage, which the U.S. also denies.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
