Trump Says Stephen Hubbard Freed by Russia Without Prisoner Swap

Trump Says Stephen Hubbard Freed by Russia Without Prisoner Swap/ TezzBuzz/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour?/ President Donald Trump said retired American teacher Stephen Hubbard was returning home after Russia released him from prison. Trump claimed the United States provided nothing in exchange and argued that imposing sanctions would have jeopardized negotiations. U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff welcomed the release during a Wednesday meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

FILE – Stephen Hubbard, a U.S. citizen accused of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine against Russia shows up in a video link as he stands in a glass cage during a court session in the Moscow City court in Moscow, Russia, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)

Quick Look

Release announced: Trump said Hubbard was heading home and would soon reunite with his family.
No swap claimed: The president said Russia received nothing in return.
Direct request: Trump said he asked Putin to release Hubbard during a telephone conversation last week.
Sanctions argument: Trump claimed additional sanctions would have halted the release negotiations.
Prison sentence: Hubbard received nearly seven years in prison in 2024 on charges of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine.
Witkoff’s response: The U.S. envoy thanked Putin during their meeting in Russia.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, left, holds a paper while speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Konstantin Palace in Strelnya, outside St. Petersburg, Russia, on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, second right, attend the talks, as Russian Presidential Envoy Kirill Dmitriev, right back to a camera, and Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov, third left, sit near at the Konstantin Palace in Strelnya, outside St. Petersburg, Russia, on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. (Kristina Solovyova, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Deep Look

Trump Says Stephen Hubbard Is Returning Home

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that Stephen Hubbard, a retired American teacher imprisoned in Russia, had been released and was traveling home.

“Stephen Hubbard, taken four years ago by Russia during the Biden Administration, was just released from prison, at the request of President Donald J. Trump, made directly to President Vladimir Putin in a telephone conversation last week,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.

Hubbard, a Michigan resident, had been imprisoned on Russian charges of fighting as a mercenary for Ukraine.

President Claims Russia Received Nothing in Exchange

Trump said the release did not involve a prisoner exchange or another concession to Moscow.

“Stephen is on his way back home and will soon be with his family. The United States, out of respect for President Trump, was not required to give anything in return — an unprecedented situation for Russia. There was no ‘swap’ necessary for this release. This major return should have taken place long ago through the Biden Administration, which got nowhere in its negotiations with the Kremlin. Stephen is on his way back home.”

Trump added: “‘Welcome home Stephen, it’s great to have you back,’”

The assertion that Washington gave nothing in return, along with Trump’s description of the arrangement as unprecedented, came from the president’s account. The supplied report did not independently establish the full terms of the release.

Trump Connects Sanctions Debate to Release Negotiations

In a separate post, Trump argued that imposing sanctions on Russia would have prevented an agreement to free Hubbard.

“Numerous people, who requested that sanctions be immediately imposed on Russia, have called to apologize to President Trump in that they didn’t know that he was negotiating the release of Stephen Hubbard, a truly big and important deal for the U.S. If sanctions would have been placed, certainly those negotiations would have come to a complete and total halt.”

Trump did not identify the people he said had apologized in the supplied account.

He also criticized his predecessor, writing: “Biden should have done the Hubbard release long ago! What a difference a President makes!”

Hubbard Was Sentenced Following Mercenary Allegations

Hubbard was sentenced in 2024 to almost seven years in prison.

Russian prosecutors alleged that he signed a contract with Ukraine’s military after Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

They said he fought alongside Ukrainian forces until he was captured two months later.

Those allegations formed the basis of the Russian prosecution.

Witkoff Thanks Putin During Wednesday Meeting

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff discussed Hubbard’s release during a Wednesday meeting with Putin.

He told the Russian president that “because of you, he’s going home to his family.”

“He’s a 75-year-old man,” Witkoff said, describing Putin as a “humanitarian.”

Trump had publicly acknowledged his involvement in efforts to free Hubbard a day earlier.

“I’ve been talking to President Putin about Mr. Hubbard. I’ve been talking to him at length. I’ve asked him to release him,” Trump said Tuesday. “Let’s see what happens.”