The U.S. offered a prisoner swap to free Brittney Griner and another American, an official says.
In response to a question last week about potentially trading Mr. Bout, William J. Burns, the C.I.A. director, speaking at the Aspen Security Forum, did not sound enthusiastic, calling Mr. Bout “a creep.”

Mr. Bout, 55, is a former Soviet military officer who made a fortune in global arms trafficking before he was caught in a federal sting operation. Russian officials have pressed his case for years, and in recent weeks Russian media outlets had directly linked his case to Ms. Griner’s.

Russia has held Ms. Griner, 31, since mid-February, when she was arrested at a Moscow airport on charges involving hashish oil found in her luggage. She has pleaded guilty to the drug charges against her and said in a court appearance outside Moscow on Wednesday that she accidentally packed a small amount of the cannabis-related substance, which she uses at the direction of a doctor to manage pain. Russia has notoriously strict drug laws. At her trial on Wednesday, she testified of her ordeal navigating an unfamiliar legal system.