American detainees released as part of historic swap with Russia return to United States | US News
Three Americans who were released from Russian prisons as part of a historic exchange deal have returned to the US.
Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva, and Paul Whelan were part of the exchange that involved the release of 24 individuals, marking the biggest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War.
They were greeted by US President Joe Biden at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, who praised their release as a diplomatic achievement.
The intricate negotiation for the exchange involved Russia and several other countries and was kept confidential for over a year.
After 13 other Western detainees were flown to Germany the previous night, Mr. Gershkovich, Ms. Kurmasheva, and Mr. Whelan are now back in the US.
As part of the deal, eight Russian prisoners were freed from facilities in the US, Germany, Norway, Slovenia, and Poland.
The Americans freed in the exchange
Mr. Gershkovich, a journalist for the Wall Street Journal, was initially arrested in March 2023 on accusations of “gathering secret information” on behalf of the CIA.
He denied the charges, and his employer denounced the case as a sham.
Evan Gershkovich pictured on a flight leaving Russia
He was sentenced to 16 years in prison earlier this month after being convicted of espionage in a trial widely regarded as politically motivated.
Alsu Kurmasheva, who holds both Russian and US citizenship, is a journalist for Radio Free Europe-Radio Liberty, a media organization funded by the US.
She was arrested in June 2023 and accused of spreading false information about the Russian military, allegations she refuted.
Journalist Alsu Kurmasheva in court on 31 May. Pic: Reuters
She was given a sentence of over six years in prison last month.
Paul Whelan, a former US marine, had been detained in Russia since his arrest in a Moscow hotel room on December 28, 2018.
Authorities claimed to have caught him with a USB drive containing a list of secret Russian agents.
Former US Marine Paul Whelan. File pic: Reuters
He was found guilty of espionage and given a 16-year sentence in a high-security prison.
Mr. Whelan, who is also a British citizen, maintained his innocence, claiming he was framed in a setup and had received the USB drive from someone else, believing it only contained vacation photos.
