Russia released 74-year-old American Stephen Hubbard on Wednesday, ending a four-year detention, as US envoy Steve Witkoff met with President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg.
Hubbard, a retired teacher, was first detained by Russian authorities in 2022 on allegations that he had fought as a mercenary in Ukraine, charges that the advocacy group Hostage Aid Worldwide has described as bogus. Following a closed-door trial in 2024, he was sentenced to nearly seven years in prison.
His release came a day after President Trump said he had spoken at length with Putin and personally urged him to free Hubbard, with the request apparently yielding a swift result once raised directly between the two leaders.
The White House noted that, unlike several previous prisoner exchanges between Washington and Moscow, the United States was not required to hand over anyone in return for Hubbard's release.
Hubbard is the second American freed by Russia in roughly two months, following the release of former US Marine Robert Gilman in August, suggesting a continued, if irregular, pattern of releases amid the broader diplomatic engagement between the two countries.
Witkoff's meeting with Putin, during which the release was announced, underscores the extent to which prisoner releases have become intertwined with the wider US-Russia diplomatic track, even as the two sides continue to navigate far more contentious issues tied to the war in Ukraine.
