Saudi Arabia did not mediate in Griner release, White House says

U.S. President Joe Biden and Cherelle Griner speak on the phone with WNBA basketball star Brittney Griner after her release by Russia, in this White House handout photo taken in the Oval Office, as Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken look on, at the White House in Washington, U.S. December 8, 2022. The White House/Handout via REUTERS

The release of US basketball player Brittney Griner was negotiated between the United States and Russia only, the White House said on Thursday, refuting a Saudi Arabia claim it was involved.

"The only countries that negotiated this deal were the United States and Russia," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, when asked about Saudi Arabia's role. "There was no mediation involved."

FILE PHOTO: U.S. basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, stands inside a defendants' cage before a court hearing in Khimki outside Moscow, Russia August 4, 2022. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool/File Photo

(Reporting by Nandita Bose; Editing by Mark Porter)