A State Department spokesperson said Friday that, for the second time in a week, a consular officer was able to gain access to Brittney Griner, the WNBA star who has been detained in Russia since February.
Ned Price, the State Department representative, said in a briefing that the visit happened Thursday and that the consular official "found her continuing to do as well as could be expected under these exceedingly challenging circumstances."
"But again, our message is a clear and simple one -- we continue to insist that Russia allow consistent and timely consular access to all U.S. citizen detainees," Price said. "One-off visits are not sufficient, and we will continue to call on Moscow to uphold its commitments under the Vienna Convention for consistent and timely access as well."
Sources close to Griner told ESPN they haven't been concerned about her well-being because her lawyers have been able to see her at least once a week.
Griner appeared briefly in court May 13, after which her lawyer told The Associated Press that her pretrial detention had been extended by one month.
Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, was detained at a Moscow airport after vape cartridges containing oil derived from cannabis were allegedly found in her luggage, which could carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. The Biden administration says Griner, 31, is being wrongfully detained.
