Hugs and tears as Evan Gershkovich and other US citizens return home (2024)

Summary

Three US citizens freed in a Russian-West prisoner swap are back on American soil after landing in Maryland
Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and Alsu Kurmasheva are greeted by US President Joe Biden and VP Kamala Harris and reunited with their families
Biden thanks his allies who he said made the "toughest call" to release the prisoners
The deal frees 24 detainees from seven countries. Ten people, including two minors, were relocated to Russia
It had been more than 18 months in the making and is believed to have hinged on Moscow's demand for the return of hitman Vadim Krasikov, who was serving a life sentence in Germany

Live Reporting

Edited by Sophie Abdulla

Gershkovich freed in prisoner exchange – Wall Street Journalpublished at 16:25 1 August
16:25 1 AugustBreaking
Evan Gershkovich has been freed as part of the prisoner exchange between Russia and the US, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, and other Americans left a Russian aircraft at an airport in Turkey's capital, Ankara, moments ago, the newspaper adds.
We'll bring you more as we get it.
How can countries do deals when relations are so bad?published at 16:20 1 August
16:20 1 August
Gordon Corera
Security correspondent
It might seem surprising that an exchange like this can be organised when relations between Russia and the West are so bad, with warnings of conflict over Ukraine.
But the reality is that they have always happened. In the height of the Cold War, there were spy-swaps between Washington and Moscow, often taking place in Berlin – like on the famous film Bridge of Spies.
And in the last two years even though Ukraine and Russia are engaged in a hot war they have also been able to organise large scale prisoner exchanges, as were Israel and Hamas at one point.
The reason is simple. Both sides have something – or someone – the other side wants, and so there is a deal is to be done.
That is not to say such deals are easy, and when relations are tense the negotiations can be harder as neither side wants to be seen to give the other something they can claim as a "win".
But intelligence agencies are used to organising the kind of quiet back channels required to conduct these delicate negotiations outside of the public gaze.
Who is Ilya Yashin? The Kremlin critic among those reportedly releasedpublished at 16:05 1 August
16:05 1 August
Sarah Rainsford
Eastern Europe correspondent, Berlin
Image source, Reuters
Ilya Yashin was so sure he would be imprisoned when the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began – because he would condemn it – that he went to the dentist to make sure his teeth were in good health.
He knew there was no chance of that in jail.
An opposition activist from a young age, a protégé of the murdered opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, he was sentenced for spreading ‘false information’ about the Russian military.
The charge was based on a YouTube stream, in which Yashin discussed the killing of civilians in Bucha, outside Kyiv, using video evidence from on the ground.
In court, before his sentence, the politician said he had no regrets.
“It’s better to spend ten years in prison than die of shame in silence for the blood your government is spilling," he said.
Sentenced to eight and a half years, he has continued to denounce the war from behind bars, apparently fearless.
It has been reported in the past that Yashin did not want to be exchanged, but today the Turkish presidency confirmed his name is on the list of those being freed.
As a Russian politician, he’s unlikely to have wanted to leave Russia. For now, the terms of his exchange, as for all the prisoners, remain unclear.
Twenty-six prisoners released, Turkish presidency sayspublished at 15:45 1 August
15:45 1 August
Twenty-six people from prisonsin seven different countries were exchanged in Ankara, Turkey's presidency says.
The prisoners are from the US, Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, Russia, and Belarus, it says in a statement.
Ten people, including two minors, were relocated to Russia, 13 prisoners to Germany, and three to the US, the statement adds.
It confirms Wall Street Journal reporterEvan Gershkovich and US marine Paul Whelan are among those released, as well as German mercenary Rico Krieger, who was imprisoned in Belarus, and Russian opposition politician Ilya Yashin.
Largest exchange despite Russia-West relations worst since Cold Warpublished at 15:26 1 August
15:26 1 August
Frank Gardner
Security correspondent
This is set to be one of the largest and most extraordinary prisoner exchanges in modern history.
Extraordinary not just for the large number of individual releases involved – up to 24 – but also the number of countries – US, Russia, Germany and three other European nations.
Perhaps the most surprising thing is that this is taking place against a backdrop of the worst relations between the West and Russia since the end of the Cold War in 1991.
Yet despite the war in Ukraine that has accelerated since Russia’s full scale invasion in 2022, it’s clear that contacts have been maintained between the various intelligence agencies.
The involvement of Turkey is no coincidence. IbrahimKalin, the head of Turkish intelligence, MIT, reportedly met his Russian counterpart in Ankara last week.
Turkey, a Nato member, has maintained good relations with Moscow, partly due to the close working relationship between Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.
Russian government plane lands in Turkey – Reuterspublished at 15:12 1 August
15:12 1 August
Image source, Reuters
A Russian government plane has landed in Turkey's capital, Ankara, according to Reuters news agency, shortly after the Turkish National Intelligence Agency (MIT) said it will be coordinating today's exchange.
"Our organisation has undertaken a major mediation role in this exchange operation, which is the most comprehensive of the recent period," the intelligence agency says.
It is not clear yet who is on board the plane.
Convicted Russian hitman on way to Turkey as part of swap – reportspublished at 14:57 1 August
14:57 1 AugustBreaking
Image source, Reuters
German news magazine Der Spiegel is reporting that, as part of a major prisoner exchange with Russia, Vadim Krasikov, identified by German officials as a colonel in Russia’s FSB intelligence service, is on a plane to Ankara in Turkey.
He was serving a life sentence for the 2019 murder of a Kremlin opponent in a Berlin park.
What's the latest? Key details about the prisoner exchangepublished at 14:36 1 August
14:36 1 August
Details of the prisoner exchange deal between Russia and the West are still emerging, but here's a look at what we know so far:
- Three US citizens imprisoned in Russia are expected to be released today as part of a deal agreed by the Biden administration
- They include Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, US Marine veteran Paul Whelan, and Russian-American radio journalist Alsu Kurmasheva
- In total, the exchange will involve 24 prisoners held in Russia, the US, Germany and three other Western countries
- Eight Russian nationals are expected to be returned to Russia, including several with suspected ties to Russian intelligence
- The swap has not happened yet but is expected later today
- Speculation about a major swap between various countries grew after several dissidents and journalists jailed in Russia were reportedly moved from their prison cells to unknown locations
- Vladimir Kara-Murza, a Kremlin opponent with dual Russian-British citizenship, is one of those detainees whose whereabouts are unknown which has fuelled expectations that he too could released
- If all the releases take place, it will be one of the biggest exchanges between Russia and the West in history
More than 20 prisoners to be released in Russia-West exchangepublished at 14:26 1 August
14:26 1 August
A total of 24 people are set to be released as part of the prisoner swap expected to take place later today between the United States, Russia, Germany, and three other European countries.
As part of the deal, at least 12 political prisoners held in Russia are expected to be released to Germany.
Eight Russian nationals are expected to be returned to Russia, including several with suspected ties to Russian intelligence.
One of them is Vadim Krasikov, identified by German officials as a colonel in Russia’s FSB intelligence service, who is serving a life sentence for the 2019 murder of a Kremlin opponent in a Berlin Park.
Who is Alsu Kurmasheva?published at 14:10 1 August
14:10 1 August
Image source, Reuters
Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva was sentenced to six-and-a-half years imprisonment by a Russian court last month.
Kurmasheva, who holds both US and Russian citizenship, was charged with spreading false information about the Russian army.
Her colleagues at the US-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) said the mother of two was arrested last October for failing to register as a foreign agent when visiting her family in the central Russian city of Kazan.
Kurmasheva has denied any wrongdoing, and Stephen Capus, RFE/RL president and CEO, told the AP news agency that her conviction was "a mockery of justice".
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Prisoner swap does not mean East-West relations are improvingpublished at 14:04 1 August
14:04 1 August
Gordon Corera
Security correspondent
Image source, Getty Images
There is a long tradition of swaps like this.
One of the largest between the United States and Russia came in the summer of 2010, when 10 people arrested in the US alleged to be deep cover spies for Russia were swapped at an airport in Vienna for four individuals who had been convicted in Russia of spying for MI6 and the CIA.
One of those people was Sergei Skripal, who Russian spies then tried to kill with the novichok nerve agent in the UK in 2018.
In that case, the US had the upper hand as the Russians were desperate for the release of their spies who had been arrested in America.
The fact a deal has been secured now does not necessarily indicate any fundamental improvement in the troubled relationship between Moscow and Washington though.
Ukraine and Russia have carried out regular prisoner swaps even though they continue to fight each other on the battlefield.
All it means is that both sides felt they were able to get something they wanted out of a deal.
Who is Evan Gershkovich?published at 13:55 1 August
13:55 1 August
Image source, EPA
Evan Gershkovich, an America journalist for the Wall Street Journal newspaper, was arrested by Russian security services in March 2023 while on a reporting trip in the city of Yekaterinburg, about 1,600km (1,000 miles) east of Moscow.
Prosecutors accused him of working for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to collect "secret information" from a Russian tank factory, claims that Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal and the US vociferously denied.
Gershkovich, 32, was found guilty of espionage by a Russian court in July of this year after a secretive trial decried as a "sham" by his employer, his family and the White House.
He was sentenced to 16 years in a high-security penal colony. Western politicians roundly condemned the verdict.
After his initial arrest he was held in Moscow's notorious Lefortovo prison. It marked the first conviction of a US journalist for espionage in Russia since the Cold War ended more than 30 years ago.
Whelan felt life was 'slipping away' as US worked for release dealpublished at 13:53 1 August
13:53 1 August
Sarah Rainsford
Eastern Europe correspondent, Berlin
Image source, Reuters
I’ve followed Paul Whelan’s case from the very start.
Of all those freed in this deal, he’s spent the longest time in prison. Convicted of espionage, he’s always denied being a spy – both at his trial and in multiple interviews with me.
He was arrested in December 2018 when FSB agents in balaclavas stormed his Moscow hotel room and pinned him to the ground. They then bundled him away in handcuffs for interrogation.
The claim was that the former US Marine was gathering secret information for US intelligence but no evidence of that was ever made public.
In court in Moscow he was nervous at first – but soon spoke out to call himself a political hostage and denounce a ‘kangaroo court’.
He had friends in Russia and had travelled to there several times. Some had miliary connections, like he did. But all those I contacted told me the idea he was a spy was laughable.
Born in Canada, to British parents with Irish roots, Whelan has four passports, so his arrest was a big deal, diplomatically.
The last time we spoke by phone from prison, a few months back, he told me he felt "abandoned" and "seriously betrayed" by the US government.
He'd been designated ‘wrongfully detained’ but in 2 previous US prisoner exchanges with Russia, Whelan was left behind. Before that call he’d always been upbeat.
Life in a prison was tough. He would be woken multiple times in the night by guards, to check he hadn’t escaped, though escape from the middle of nowhere was impossible.
Stuck serving a 16-year sentence, Whelan was growing despondent. His parents are elderly. His beloved dog, Flora, had died. He told me his life was "slipping away" while the US government looked for a deal to release him.
Now that’s finally happened. Paul Whelan is going home and I suspect he himself can barely believe it.
US and Russia agree to prisoner exchangepublished at 13:48 1 August
13:48 1 August
The Biden administration has agreed to a prisoner exchange with Russia and is expected to soon secure the release of three American citizens imprisoned in Russia, the BBC's US partner CBS reports.
The prisoners include Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, Marine veteran Paul Whelan, and Russian-American radio journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, a senior administration official confirms.
Others are believed to be part of the deal. The exchange has not occurred yet but is expected later today.
Whelan and Gershkovich were both imprisoned in Russia on accusations of espionage that were consistently disputed by the United States.
Kurmasheva, a dual American and Russian citizen, was detained in Russia in June of 2023 on charges of spreading false information about the Russian army.
The White House, State Department and CIA did not immediately return a request for comment.
When asked about the movement of Russian prisoners on Wednesday, State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said: “I don't want to speculate on any reasoning.
"What I can say is that the United States continues to be focused on working around the clock to work to get our wrongfully detained American citizens home. And that continues to be the case, but no updates beyond that."
Gershkovich among prisoners set to be released in major exchangepublished at 13:44 1 August
13:44 1 AugustBreaking
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is set to be freed as part of a large prisoner exchange between Russia and Western countries, the BBC understands.
Former US Marine Paul Whelan, who had been held in Russia since 2018, is also part of the exchange.
Speculation an exchange was imminent grew in recent days after prisoners in Russian and Western countries were reportedly moved from their cells.
We'll be bringing you more details as we get them.