On 1 August 2024, the United States and Russia conducted the largest prisoner exchange since the end of the Cold War, [1] involving the release of twenty-six people.
Following at least six months of secret multilateral negotiations, [2] [3] Russia and Belarus released sixteen detainees while the U.S., Germany, Poland, Slovenia, and Norway collectively released eight detainees and two minors. Among those released were three American citizens: Evan Gershkovich, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal , Alsu Kurmasheva, a journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine, with Gershkovich and Whelan having each received sixteen-year sentences for espionage, garnering considerable public and political attention in the U.S. [4] [5]
The prisoner exchange, which has been described as one of the most complex in history, [6] took place at Ankara Esenboğa Airport in Turkey, whose government served as a mediator between both parties. [7] [8] Under the terms of the agreement, the eight Russian nationals and two minors were transferred to Russia, while thirteen of the prisoners held by Russia and Belarus were released to Germany and three to the U.S. [9] Both the U.S. and Russia released statements hailing the prisoner swap as a significant diplomatic victory. [10] [11]
During the Cold War, the U.S. and the Soviet Union routinely exchanged prisoners, who were typically spies, military officers, or other government agents. [12] [13] The end of the Cold War in 1991 resulted in a marked decline in espionage activities—and, accordingly, prisoner exchanges—between the U.S. and the Soviet successor state, the Russian Federation; the most recent mass prisoner swap between the two countries occurred in 2010, when ten Russian sleeper agents detained in the U.S. as part of the so-called "Illegals Program" were exchanged for four prisoners held in Russia.
Over the past decade, rising geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and Russia have resulted in increased prisoner swaps, which increasingly involve either political dissidents or individuals deemed by the U.S. government to have been "wrongfully detained" by Russia. [12] In 2012, Russian enacted a foreign agent law that has been used to persecute those considered to be under foreign influence, officially classifying them as foreign agents; the scope of the law was expanded in 2024. [14] Following the start of the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War in 2014, and especially since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Russian government has intensified its crackdowns on domestic opposition and "foreign influence". On 4 March 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law a bill introducing prison sentences of up to 15 years for spreading "fake news" about Russia's military operation in Ukraine; [15] thousands of Russians have been prosecuted under this law for criticizing the war in Ukraine, [16] including opposition politician Ilya Yashin and artist Aleksandra Skochilenko. [17]
Travor Reed, a U.S. Marine veteran arrested in Russia in 2019 allegedly for attacking a police officer, was released in April 2022 for Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot and aviation transport expert imprisoned in the U.S. for drug smuggling. Less than a year after Reed's release, American basketball player Brittney Griner, who had been arrested in February 2022 for drug smuggling, was exchanged the following December for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. Several analysts and U.S. officials expressed concern that Russia used Reed and Griner as leverage in response to the international sanctions imposed upon it after the invasion of Ukraine. [18] [19] Several other Americans held by Russia, including former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan and schoolteacher Marc Fogel, had been contemplated as part of the exchange deal for Griner; the negotiations leading to her release reportedly paved the way for the most recent exchange of twenty-six individuals between both countries and their respective allies. [20]
The involvement of Belarus in the deal reflects the foreign policy of Putin, which envisages post-Soviet states as Russia's sphere of influence and opposes NATO enlargement there. [21] [22] According to Western analysts, [23] [24] Belarus acts on the Kremlin's demand under the Russian-dominated supranational "Union State".
During a February 2024 trip by German chancellor Olaf Scholz to Washington, D.C., the German and American governments began working on how to negotiate an agreement that would include the freeing of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris met with Scholz and Slovenian prime minister Robert Golob separately during the Munich Security Conference in February 2024 to privately discuss the negotiations. [25] After Navalny's death on the first day of the conference—explained by his allies as a killing to prevent the exchange—the proposal turned to focus on other prisoners. [26] [27]
On 21 July, American president Joe Biden called Slovenian prime minister Robert Golob to secure the necessary pardons for two Russian spies held in the country that were to be exchanged as part of the swap. [27]
In the days leading up to the exchange, three Russians were transferred from facilities operated by the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to the United States Marshals Service. [28]
Turkey served as a key mediator of the exchange and was named by President Biden as one of the nations that had "stepped up" to ensure that the prisoners were released; [29] [30] the Turkish government, which maintains relatively warm relations with both parties, oversaw the physical exchange of prisoners at Ankara Esenboğa Airport. [31]
Twenty-six individuals, including two minors believed to be the children of the two Russian spies in Slovenia, were released. [32] [33] [4] Marc Fogel and Ksenia Karelina were not included as part of the exchange. [34] Individuals returning to Russia are from various countries: the United States, Germany, Slovenia, Poland, and Norway. [35]
The following people were released by Russia and Belarus: [33] [36] [37]
Name | Nationality | Country detained in | Held since | Occupation | Charges | Prison sentence |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lilia Chanysheva | ![]() | ![]() | 2021 | Regional coordinator of Navalny Headquarters in Ufa | Extremism | 9.5 years |
Ksenia Fadeeva | ![]() | ![]() | 2023 | Regional coordinator of Navalny Headquarters in Tomsk | Extremism | 9 years |
Vadim Ostanin | ![]() | ![]() | 2021 | Regional coordinator of Navalny Headquarters in Barnaul | Extremism | 9 years |
Evan Gershkovich | ![]() | ![]() | 2023 | Reporter for The Wall Street Journal | Espionage | 16 years |
Vladimir Kara-Murza | ![]() ![]() | ![]() | 2022 | Opposition politician | Treason | 25 years |
Rico Krieger | ![]() | ![]() | 2024 | Red Cross employee | Terrorism | Death |
Alsu Kurmasheva | ![]() ![]() | ![]() | 2023 | Journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty | Spreading false information about the Russian military | 6.5 years |
Kevin Lik | ![]() ![]() | ![]() | 2023 | High school student | Treason | 4 years |
Herman Moyzhes | ![]() ![]() | ![]() | 2024 | Immigration lawyer | Treason | Not brought to trial |
Oleg Orlov | ![]() | ![]() | 2024 | Human rights activist | Discrediting the Russian military | 2.5 years |
Andrei Pivovarov | ![]() | ![]() | 2021 | Head of Open Russia political organization | Carrying out activities of an undesirable organization | 4 years |
Patrick Schöbel | ![]() | ![]() | 2024 | Technician, was a tourist in Russia | Drug smuggling (6 gummy bears coated with cannabis oil) | Not brought to trial |
Alexandra Skochilenko | ![]() | ![]() | 2022 | Artist and author | Spreading false information about the Russian military | 7 years |
Demuri Voronin | ![]() ![]() | ![]() | 2021 | Political scientist | Treason | 13 years and 3 months |
Paul Whelan | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | ![]() | 2018 | Security executive and former U.S. Marine | Espionage | 16 years |
Ilya Yashin | ![]() | ![]() | 2022 | Opposition politician | Spreading false information about the Russian military | 8.5 years |
The following people were released by Western countries: [33] [36] [37]
Name | Nationality | Country detained in | Held since | Occupation | Charges | Prison sentence |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Artem Dultsev | ![]() | ![]() | 2022 | Undercover spies, SVR | Espionage | 19 months |
Anna Dultseva | ||||||
Pablo González (Pavel Rubtsov) | ![]() ![]() | ![]() | 2022 | Journalist, suspected GRU agent | Espionage | Not brought to trial |
Vladislav Klyushin | ![]() | ![]() | 2023 | Businessman | Fraud | 9 years |
Vadim Konoshchenock | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 2022 | Suspected FSB officer | Conspiracy to evade sanctions | Not sentenced |
Vadim Krasikov | ![]() | ![]() | 2021 | FSB officer | Murder (of Zelimkhan Khangoshvili) | Life in prison |
Mikhail Mikushin | ![]() | ![]() | 2022 | Researcher, suspected GRU agent | Espionage | Not brought to trial |
Roman Seleznev | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | 2014 | Hacker | 38 charges related to hacking [lower-alpha 1] | 27 years |
In the United States, Republican representative Michael McCaul, the chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, praised the exchange and claimed that Russian president Vladimir Putin had a "strategy of detaining individuals for negotiations". [39]
Republican presidential nominee and former president Donald Trump called the exchange "a win for Putin" and said that it "sets a very bad precedent" for US. He also questioned if money was involved in the deal. [40] [41] His running mate, JD Vance, however, called the exchange "great news", and said that Trump deserved credit for it, claiming Putin was motivated to "clean house" by fear of a future Trump presidency. [42]
News of the exchange was broken by Bloomberg prior to the plane's landing in Turkey; this was criticized by other outlets because information provided by the White House to journalists was embargoed until the individuals were successfully released. [43]
After finishing a 2024 Summer Olympics match with Team U.S.A. winning 87–73 over Belgium, Olympiad basketball player and Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner, who had previously been in discussions with Paul Whelan for a joint release together before the Viktor Bout–Brittney Griner prisoner exchange came about, expressed great joy over hearing about the prisoner exchange, saying that she's "head over heels happy for the families right now. Any day that Americans come home, that's a win." [44] She would also add that "although today is one of celebration, our hearts go out to the many Americans still being held hostage overseas, and their families. As we extend support to those who have returned and celebrate the collective hands that helped to make American families whole –we must continue to do everything we can to shine a light on the remaining Americans detained." [45]
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre described the exchange as a difficult dilemma: "Normally, we want people who are arrested and suspected of crimes in our countries to be investigated and possibly brought to trial according to our principles of the rule of law. So, intervening in that is a very serious matter. But you have to make that assessment in a broader context. And that broader context indicated that it was the right thing to do." [46]
Minister of Foreign Affairs Espen Barth Eide stated that the exchange was part of a larger goal where it is important for Norway to act as a good ally and to contribute where other countries have had great needs and Norway has been able to assist. [47] He also commented on the case of Mikhail Mikushin, a suspected GRU agent imprisoned in Norway: "This [the exchange] is in practice the closest one gets to an official confirmation that he is a Russian intelligence officer and not a Brazilian researcher, as he has originally claimed to be. [48]
The Kremlin press service stated that "the decision to sign [pardoning] decrees was made with the goal of returning Russian citizens who were detained and imprisoned in foreign countries." It was noted that the Russian side is grateful to the leadership of all countries that assisted in the preparation of the exchange and is also thankful to Alexander Lukashenko for pardoning Rico Krieger, who had been sentenced to death in Belarus. [49]
According to Meduza, state and pro-government media were given recommendations from the Kremlin's information bloc on how to cover the exchange. When mentioning political prisoners, specific sentences received by exchange participants were to be referenced. Russian political prisoners were to be referred to as "troublemakers and traitors," "agents of the West," and that "nothing serious happened – we got rid of the unnecessary." The citizens received in the exchange were to be noted as those who "worked for the Motherland"; for instance, in reports about Vadim Krasikov, it was to be indicated that he "eliminated a field commander, an enemy." [50]
Novaya Gazeta notes that Russian pro-government media generally covered the prisoner exchange topic in a restrained manner, mostly in news format: Russians were exchanged for "a group of people who acted in the interests of foreign states and conducted subversive activities." [51] In this format, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev commented on the exchange, stating that it was necessary to "pull out our own" in exchange for traitors. [50]
Freed as part of a prisoner swap between Russia and the West, the opposition figures, Andrei Pivovarov, Vladimir Kara-Murza and Ilya Yashin, had mixed feelings about the deal. [52] Kara-Murza stated that article 61 of the Constitution of Russia forbids to deport citizens if they do not approve. None of them did so or was even asked to do so. Yashin added that he is Russian, a Russian politician, and sees himself as a patriot, whose place is in Russia. [52]
Yashin said it was hard to accept that he was free "because a murderer was free" — a reference to Vadim Krasikov, a Russian convicted of killing a former Chechen militant in Berlin in 2019 and released as part of the deal. [52]
They were flown to Germany after being released and met by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the Bonn Cologne airport.
"It was not easy for anyone to make this decision to deport a murderer sentenced to life imprisonment after only a few years in prison," Scholz said at the airport. [53] He added he took the decision out of an obligation to protect German nationals and solidarity with the United States.
Kara-Murza defended Scholz's decision, saying the only thing that matters is that human lives were saved by going through with the agreement. [54]
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan praised the "historic" operation and congratulated the National Intelligence Organization staff who took part in the operation. "Türkiye will continue to be the center of peaceful diplomacy in line with the vision of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan," he added. [55]
The press service of the Turkish Foreign Ministry stated that “from the very beginning of the negotiation process to the final moment of the exchanges, all security measures, logistical planning, and needs of the operation were managed by the National Intelligence Organization.” [56]
Reporters Without Borders stated that Gershkovich "should have never spent a single day in a Russian prison", and their director of campaigns Rebecca Vincent called his arrest "outrageous". The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom celebrated his expected release. [57] Committee to Protect Journalists chief executive Jodie Ginsberg requested the release of all detained journalists in Russia. [58]
Viktor Anatolyevich Bout is a Russian arms dealer and politician. A weapons manufacturer and former Soviet military translator, he used his multiple companies to smuggle arms from Eastern Europe to Africa and the Middle East during the 1990s and early 2000s. Bout gained the nicknames the "Merchant of Death" and "Sanctions Buster" after British minister Peter Hain read a report to the United Nations in 2003 on Bout's wide-reaching operations, extensive clientele, and willingness to bypass embargoes.
Ilya Valeryevich Yashin is a Russian opposition politician who led the People's Freedom Party (PARNAS) from 2012 to 2016, and then its Moscow branch. He was also head of the Moscow municipal district of Krasnoselsky and former chairman of the Council of Deputies of the Krasnoselsky district from 2017 to 2021.
Brittney Yvette Griner is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist with the U.S. women's national basketball team and a six-time WNBA All-Star. Griner was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2023.
BC UMMC Ekaterinburg is a Russian professional women's basketball team based in Yekaterinburg competing in the Russian Premier League, and until February 2022 in FIBA Europe's EuroLeague Women. Founded in 1938 as Zenit Sverdlovsk, the club had its name changed to Uralmash Sverdlovsk in 1960.
Michael "Mickey" Bergman is the CEO of Global Reach and the Vice President and Executive Director of the Richardson Center for Global Engagement. He also serves as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University's Walsh School of Foreign Service, where his graduate level courses focus on the art of emotional intelligence in international relations and negotiations. Previously, he served as Executive Director of the Global Alliances Program at the Aspen Institute and founded the Solel Strategic Group (SSG).
Oleh Hennadiiovych Sentsov is a Ukrainian filmmaker, writer and activist from Crimea. Sentsov has directed the feature films Gamer (2011), Numbers, and Rhino (2021).
Roman Valerevich Seleznev, also known by his hacker name Track2, is a Russian computer hacker. Seleznev was indicted in the United States in 2011, and was convicted of hacking into servers to steal credit-card data. His activities are estimated to have caused more than US$169 million in damages to businesses and financial institutions. Seleznev was arrested on July 5, 2014, while vacationing in the Maldives, and was sentenced to 27 years in prison for wire fraud, intentional damage to a protected computer, and identity theft. However, Seleznev would only serve a few years in prison before he would take part in the 2024 Russian prisoner exchange that involved 26 total people, including himself.
Paul Nicholas Whelan is a Canadian-born former United States Marine with U.S., British, Irish, and Canadian citizenship. Whelan left the Marines in 2008 with a bad conduct discharge after being convicted on multiple counts "related to larceny".
Zelimkhan Sultanovich Khangoshvili was an ethnic Chechen born in Georgia who was a former platoon commander for the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria as a volunteer during the Second Chechen War, and a Georgian military officer during the 2008 Russo-Georgian War. Later on, he allegedly turned into a useful source of information for the Georgian Intelligence Service by identifying Russian spies and jihadists operating on domestic and foreign soil to Georgian intelligence agents. Khangoshvili was considered a terrorist by the Government of the Russian Federation, the Federal Security Service, and wanted in Russia. On 23 August 2019, Khangoshvili was assassinated in Kleiner Tiergarten, a park in Berlin, by FSB operative Vadim Krasikov.
Jennifer Jacobs is an American journalist and former senior White House correspondent for Bloomberg News. She was fired by Bloomberg for breaking an embargo related to the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in a prisoner exchange deal with Russia.
Roger Dean Carstens is an American diplomat and retired United States Army Special Forces lieutenant colonel. Carstens has served as the special presidential envoy for hostage affairs since 2020.
Vadim Nikolaevich Krasikov is a Russian security service hitman who was sentenced to life imprisonment in Germany for the killing of Zelimkhan Khangoshvili in Berlin, Germany on August 23, 2019. On August 1, 2024, he returned to Russia after a prisoner exchange between Russia and the West. One of the prisoners involved in the exchange for Krasikov, Ilya Yashin, would condemn the fact that he was specifically freed in exchange for him due to Krasikov originally being sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Khangoshvili during the Second Chechen War.
FKU Corrective Colony No. 2 of the FSIN of Russia for the Republic of Mordovia, or simply IK-2 Yavas, is a women's corrective colony in Russia. It is located near Yavas, Mordovia, about 300 mi (480 km) southeast of Moscow. It is known for the incarceration of WNBA player Brittney Griner.
On December 8, 2022, Russia and the United States conducted a 1-for-1 prisoner exchange, trading Brittney Griner, an American basketball player, for Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer. Griner, a WNBA champion star and Team USA Olympic athlete, had been convicted of smuggling and possession of cannabis in Russia in August 2022 and sentenced to nine years in prison. Bout had been arrested in Thailand in 2008 and transferred to the custody of the United States, where he was convicted of terrorism-related charges and sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2012. The exchange took place at Al Bateen Executive Airport in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, following months of negotiations.
Marc Hilliard Fogel is an American schoolteacher who was arrested in August 2021 by Russian authorities for trying to enter Russia with 0.6 ounces (17 g) of medical marijuana. In June 2022, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Evan Gershkovich is an American journalist and reporter at The Wall Street Journal covering Russia.
Pablo González Yagüe is a Russian–Spanish journalist. He has worked as an independent journalist for different mediums, specialising in Eastern Europe and ex-Soviet countries. He has covered various conflicts like the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, the war in Donbas and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Alsu Khamidovna Kurmasheva is a Russian and American journalist with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Tatar-Bashkir Service. Kurmasheva was arrested in Kazan, Russia on October 18, 2023, and charged with failure to register as a foreign agent. The charge carried a potential sentence of five years in prison. Kurmasheva was released on August 1, 2024 as part of a prisoner exchange.
Jonathan "Jon" Franks is an American advocate and public relations crisis consultant known for his work in securing the release of individuals held hostage or detained abroad. Franks has successfully advocated for the release of numerous Americans detained in various countries, working through public and private channels. Notable cases include: Andrew Tahmooressi, Michael White, Trevor Reed, Taylor Dudley, James Frisvold, Ridge Alkonis, Savoi Wright, among others. Franks provides commentary to the media on cases of Americans held hostage, and hostage diplomacy.
Rico Krieger is a German citizen, most notable for his sabotage work inside Belarus for the Kastuś Kalinoŭski Regiment and Security Service of Ukraine, subsequent capture, and release during the 2024 Russian prisoner exchange.
The U.S. and Russia on Thursday completed their largest prisoner swap in post-Soviet history...
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