WASHINGTON, Oct 21 — Stephen Hubbard, an American taken captive by Russian forces years ago in Ukraine, has been freed and was “on his way back home”, US President Donald Trump said today.

Russian President Vladimir Putin first announced the prisoner release during a meeting with US special envoy Steve Witkoff, Russian news agencies reported.

Putin reportedly said that Hubbard was at Pulkovo Airport in Saint Petersburg, adding that Witkoff had thanked the Russian leader for the release.

Hubbard, a retired English teacher in his 70s, was sentenced in a closed trial in October 2024 to nearly seven years in prison for “mercenary work” on behalf of Ukraine, a charge he denies.

Trump said that Hubbard’s release was secured without need for a “swap” with Moscow.

“Stephen is on his way back home and will soon be with his family,” the American president wrote on his Truth Social platform.

“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.”

However, Trump also tied Hubbard’s release to the recent suspension of some American sanctions and tariffs on Moscow.

“If sanctions would have been placed, certainly those negotiations would have come to a complete and total halt,” he wrote in another Truth Social post.

Today’s announcement came as Witkoff met to brief Putin on his meeting with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky in Oslo a day earlier, which the American envoy described as “productive”.

Trump had said on Tuesday that he had asked Putin for Hubbard’s release.

“I’ve been talking to him at length. I’ve asked him to release him. Let’s see what happens,” Trump told journalists in Washington.

Today, Witkoff said Trump and “our whole nation sends their thanks because of Stephen Hubbard,” calling Putin a “humanitarian”. — AFP