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Who is the "merchant of death" that the US used as 'bait' and why is it so important to Putin

2022-12-09 14:35:37Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Who is the "merchant of death" that the US used as 'bait'
Viktor Bout

Perhaps it is neither the right time nor the right moment, but the pressure of the moment seems to have caused the "head-to-head" exchange of an American basketball player with an arms dealer to happen now. Brittney Griner and Viktor Bout are accused of completely opposite crimes, but circumstances and political pressure from both sides caused this imbalance to be reserved. On the one hand is Griner, who has taken on special significance for the United States, as it was used as a geopolitical bait under the influence of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. And that was the reason why the Biden administration immediately started negotiations with the official Kremlin. Meanwhile, on the other side, Bout became extremely important for Russia, turning into a big puzzle.

But who is this man for whom Putin "leaves his head"?

Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, who was returned to Russia on Thursday in a prisoner swap with US women's basketball star Brittney Griner, is widely known abroad as the "Death Merchant" who fueled some of the worst conflicts in world.

In Russia, however, he is seen as an adventurous businessman who was unjustly imprisoned after an overly aggressive US operation.

Nicolas Cage's 2005 film Lord of War was largely based on his story, Bout, a former Soviet air force officer who rose to fame apparently supplying weapons to civil wars in South America, the Middle East and Africa. His clients reportedly included Liberia's Charles Taylor, Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi and both sides in Angola's civil war.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the exchange took place in Abu Dhabi, and Russian television showed video of Viktor Bout on a private jet, checking his blood pressure and talking to his family on the phone. Footage later showed him arriving at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport, with his wife and mother hugging him.

"They just woke me up and told me to gather my things," Bout said, referring to US prison officials. "They didn't give me any specific information, but I understood the situation."

Mr. Bout's mother, Raisa, thanked President Vladimir Putin and the Foreign Ministry for her son's release, Tass news agency reported.

Russia had pressed for years for Mr Bout's release and as speculation grew of such a deal, the upper house of parliament opened an exhibition of paintings he made in prison - whose subjects ranged from Soviet dictator Josef Stalin to a kitten.

The display of his art underscored Bout's complexity. Although in a bloody business, the 55-year-old was a fan of vegetarian food and classical music, said to speak six languages.

Even the former federal judge who sentenced him in 2011 thought his 11 years behind bars was the appropriate sentence.

"He has done enough time for what he did," Shira A. Scheindlin told The Associated Press in July, as prospects for his release appeared to be increasing.

Ms Griner, who was arrested at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport in February after boxes of cannabis oil were found in her luggage, was sentenced in August to nine years in prison. Washington contested her sentence as disproportionate, and some observers suggested that exchanging an arms dealer for a prisoner for a small amount of drugs would be a bad deal.

Viktor Bout was convicted in 2011 on charges of terrorism. Prosecutors said he was ready to sell up to $20 million in weapons, including surface-to-air missiles to shoot down US helicopters. When they gave closing arguments at his sentencing in 2012, Bout shouted: "It's a lie!"

Viktor Bout has steadfastly proclaimed his innocence, describing himself as a legitimate businessman who did not sell weapons.

Mr. Bout's case fits well with Moscow's position that Washington tried to capture and suppress innocent Russians on frivolous grounds.

Increasingly, Russia cited his case as a human rights issue. His wife and lawyer claimed his health deteriorated in the harsh environment of the prison where foreigners are not always entitled to vacations that Americans can get.

Mr. Bout was not scheduled to be released until 2029. He was held at a medium-security prison in Marion, Illinois.

"He got a tough sentence," said Scheindlin, a retired judge, noting that U.S. operatives made him say he was aware that Americans could die from the weapons he sold in order to seek a sentence of long imprisonment, if not a life sentence.

Judge Scheindlin gave Mr. Bout the mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years, but said she did so only because it was required.

At the time, his defense lawyer claimed the US had targeted Mr Bout in retaliation after his companies helped ship goods to US military contractors involved in the Iraq war.

The supply took place despite United Nations sanctions imposed on Mr Bout since 2001 because of his reputation as a notorious illegal arms dealer.

Prosecutors had asked Judge Scheindlin to impose a life sentence.

Viktor Bout was estimated to be worth around $6 billion in March 2008 when he was arrested in Bangkok, Thailand. US authorities tricked him into leaving Russia for what he thought would be a meeting over a business deal to send what prosecutors described as "a huge arsenal of weapons - including hundreds of surface-to-air missiles, machine guns and sniper rifle - 10 million rounds of ammunition and five tons of plastic explosives".

He was arrested at a luxury hotel in Bangkok after talking to informants of the Drug Enforcement Administration operation, who posed as officials of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, also known as the FARC. The group was classified by Washington as a narco-terrorist group.

He was brought to the US in November 2010.

The nickname "Merchant of Death" was given to Viktor Bout by a senior official of the British Foreign Office. Nofka was included in the US government's indictment of Viktor Boutin.

And naturally in this case the questions arise: Why has the United States spent so much time keeping him ungracefully imprisoned? Will he come back again? We may not know this, but what we do know is that if there is a winner in this midst, it is Vladimir Putin, but a victory that comes at the price of exposing his weakness and his need to keep the military elite close to him. which it supports.


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