A group of Americans wrongfully detained in Russia have been freed in a multi-country prisoner swap that President Joe Biden called “a feat of diplomacy.”
Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva, and Vladimir Kara-Murza are “finally coming home” after being “unjustly imprisoned” abroad, Biden announced Thursday from the White House.
The four individuals were part of a wider deal that freed a total of 24 prisoners being held in six countries. Specifically, 16 detainees from Russia were released, including Russian political prisoners. Russia received eight prisoners in the swap.
“Some of these women and men have been unjustly held for years,” the president said. “All have endured unimaginable suffering and uncertainty. Today, their agony is over.”
Biden thanked U.S. allies for taking part in the complex negotiations to secure the deal including Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Turkey.
“This is a powerful example of why it’s vital to have friends in this world whom you can trust and depend upon. Our alliances make Americans safer,” he said in a White House statement.
“It’s one of the best days of their lives,” White House Press press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during a press briefing.
“This was vintage Joe Biden,” national security advisor Jake Sullivan said. He claimed that the deal would not have happened if Biden was not in office.
Freed Americans
Whelan and Gershkovich were both labeled wrongfully detained by the U.S. government.
Whelan, 54, was visiting Russia in 2018 for a friend’s wedding. He was arrested in Moscow and later convicted of espionage. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Gershkovich, 32, was arrested in Yekaterinburg in 2023 while on assignment as a journalist. He was also charged with espionage and sentenced to 16 years.
“WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich is free,” Emma Tucker, Wall Street Journal editor-in-chief, wrote in a post on X. “This is a day of great joy and relief for Evan, his family, WSJ colleagues, and all those who campaigned so hard for his release. It is also a great day for press freedom.”
Two other journalists were part of the major prisoner exchange.
Russian-British national Kara-Murza was a contributor for the Washington Post and was known to be critical of the Kremlin. The journalist, an American green card holder, had been awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his journalism. His work included “passionate columns written under great personal risk from his prison cell,” according to a description of his work. The journalist was charged with treason and sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Kurmasheva, a Russian-American reporter with U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, was also freed. The 47-year-old journalist, a permanent resident of the United States, was arrested in October 2023 on a visit to see family in Kazan. She was charged with failure to register as a foreign agent.
The Swap
Turkey’s intelligence agency confirmed it mediated and facilitated the prisoner swap.
“Our organisation has undertaken a major mediation role in this exchange operation, which is the most comprehensive of the recent period,” Turkey’s National Intelligence Agency (MIT) said in a statement.
The prisoners in Russia took a flight to Turkey before heading to their home countries from Ankara.
The United States in April 2022 secured prisoner exchanges that swapped former U.S. Marine Trevor Reed for convicted drug trafficker Konstantin Yaroshenko. WNBA player Brittney Griner was released later that year for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
Biden at the time weighed in on Whelan’s case.
“Sadly, for totally illegitimate reasons, Russia is treating Paul’s case different than Brittney’s,” he had said. “And while we have not yet succeeded in securing Paul’s release, we are not giving up. We will never give up.”
Biden in July 2023 said that had been pursuing a prisoner exchange for Gershkovich and other Americans wrongfully detained.
“I’m serious on a prisoner exchange,” he said. “And I’m serious about doing all we can to free Americans being illegally held in Russia or anywhere else for that matter, and that process is underway.”
What’s Next
Biden said he would not stop working until every American wrongfully detained or held hostage around the world is reunited with their family, noting that his administration has brought home more than 70 such Americans, many of whom were in captivity before he took office.
Sullivan confirmed that the United States is “actively working” to free Marc Fogel and others.
Vice President Kamala Harris tonight will welcome the four individuals home when they finally arrive on U.S. soil.