Paul Whelan, prior to his wrongful imprisonment in Russia (courtesy of the Whelan family).

As tensions rise with the invasion of Ukraine, the family of Russian prisoner Paul Whelan, learned on March 3 that the Diplomatic pouch, in which mail and parcels from Washington DC have been sent to the US Embassy in Moscow, Russia, will no longer be going there.

Those who wish to continue writing letters to Paul may do so by using the following address:

431161 RUSSIA
Mordovia Republic
Zubovo-Polyanskiy Rayon
posyolok Ozernyi, St. Lesnaya 3
FKU IK-17
Whelan Paul

(Many find that putting RUSSIA again at the bottom helps, as sometimes the USPS gets confused and returns mail!). Also, letters sent via regular post to Russia will require weighing and a postage check at the post office.

Currently the US Embassy in Moscow is still open, but that may change at any time. Fortunately, Paul is still able to call his family daily for 15 minutes from Mordovia.

Paul’s sister, Elizabeth, noted last week on the family’s GoFundMe page that all the donations that have been received for Paul have meant that they were able to help the US Embassy in Moscow send a large amount to his prison account, and add to his phone card, to last him a while as this plays out. She thanked all of the donors for helping to make this possible.

His brother, David, made this statement to the media on March 2: “As you can imagine, since his labor camp is a 13 hour drive to Russia’s nearest occupation forces at Rostov-on-Don, Paul is somewhat insulated from Russian war crimes. Even the crash of the ruble is, for the moment, less of an impact on him than on “free” Russians. He has told our parents that other prisoners are experiencing problems replenishing their prison accounts and phone cards. A silver lining is that his US$ may go much further now with the ruble worth less than a penny. We are watching the impact of sanctions, expected retaliation by the Russian Federation government, and making what contingency plans we can to support him.

“These plans hinge on the availability of the US Embassy in Moscow. Since Russian staff in Washington will have to leave at the end of their 3-year visas in June, we are expecting an equivalent number of Americans will be forced out from Moscow, regardless of how long they have been in Russia. There is also the more cataclysmic possibility that the US Embassy will have to close, or shift their services, as they have in Ukraine. Hopefully all Americans currently in Russia will be able to safely exit before they, too, are falsely arrested and held hostage like Paul, as Secretary Blinken warned this past week.”

For now, cards and letters remain a good way to remind Paul Whelan that he is not forgotten, especially with world events being so precarious.