Summary: “Today, three American citizens and one American green-card holder who were unjustly imprisoned in Russia are finally coming home: Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva, and Vladimir Kara-Murza,” Biden stated, unveiling the largest US-Russia prisoner swap since the end of the Cold War. “We remember all those still wrongfully detained or held hostage around the world. And reaffirm our pledge to their families: We see you. We are with you. And we will never stop working to bring your loved ones home where they belong.”
Gershkovich’s employer, The Wall Street Journal, confirmed the following brief details of all who were included in the swap:
- Gershkovich was handed over to U.S. authorities at an airport in Ankara, Turkey, and was set to board a plane to the U.S. Russia had kept the 32-year-old behind bars for more than a year on a false allegation of espionage.
- Former Marine Paul Whelan was also released, as well as journalist Alsu Kurmasheva and Vladimir Kara-Murza, a British-Russian dissident. Russia also released a number of political dissidents.
- The key to the prisoner deal was freeing Russian assassin Vadim Krasikov, convicted of murder in Germany after he gunned down a rebel leader in Berlin in 2019. Germany said its decision to release him wasn’t taken lightly.
On the Russian side, TASS said: “The Russians were exchanged for a group of persons who acted in the interests of foreign states to the detriment of the security of the Russian Federation,” citing the FSB. In total the deal involved 24 prisoners and the cooperation of six countries to accomplish. And the following Russian hackers:
Vladislav Klyushin, a Russian national sentenced last year to nearly a decade in prison after being found guilty by a federal jury in Boston of hacking into corporate earnings databases to steal and trade on nonpublic information. U.S. officials had described Klyushin as having “extensive ties” to the Russian president’s office.
Roman Seleznev, the son of a member of the Russian parliament. Prosecutors had described Seleznev as “one of the most prolific credit-card thieves in history.” He was convicted in 2016 by a federal jury in Seattle on charges of hacking into hundreds of businesses and selling stolen data online, resulting in more than $169 million in fraud losses.
The US government and Turkey meanwhile have released the first photo of the freed Americans after finally being handed over to US officials at an airport in Turkey:
During the Thursday speech hailing the swap and the Americans’ newfound freedom, Biden uttered this false accusation against Trump, in another awkward moment…
“President Trump has said repeatedly that he could’ve gotten the hostages out without giving anything in exchange.”
“Why didn’t he do it when he was president?”
No surprise, Biden doesn’t know that Evan Gershkovich was taken on his watch. Ridiculous. pic.twitter.com/gIQUpvBY0b
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) August 1, 2024
Trump responded on Truth social with some pressing questions of his own:
So when are they going to release the details of the prisoner swap with Russia? How many people do we get versus them? Are we also paying them cash? Are they giving us cash (Please withdraw that question, because I’m sure the answer is NO)? Are we releasing murderers, killers, or…
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) August 1, 2024
It has also been revealed that the US had been working on a deal to free Alexei Navalny before his early death – said to be from ‘natural causes’ – in a Russian penal colony.
Earlier: In a massive overnight night development, Russia has released Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan in a prisoner swap, Bloomberg and others confirm.
Some sources are saying that as many as 20 and 30 political prisoners and journalists might be part of a multi-country exchange reportedly in progress, but what’s certain is that Gershkovich and Whelan are currently on their way to freedom.
“The men, jailed in Russia on espionage charges they and the US deny, are en route to destinations outside of Russia,” reports Bloomberg. “The US and its allies will return prisoners to Russia that they hold under the deal, the people said, asking for anonymity to discuss matters that aren’t yet public.”
And The Moscow Times speculated overnight as rumors swirled of an impending major deal with Moscow, “Russia may be preparing to free between 20 and 30 political prisoners and journalists in an imminent exchange with the United States and Germany, a source familiar with the planning said, in what, if confirmed, would be the largest swap since the end of the Cold War.” However, these latter details have yet to be confirmed. It is also as yet unclear who on the Russian side is being freed.
Only very recently, on July 19, a Yekaterinburg handed down a very significant 16-year prison sentence in Gershkovich’s espionage case, after he had been behind bars since is March 2023 arrest.
Russian authorities claim he was spying for the CIA while investigating a major Russian defense company in Yekaterinburg, a city which lies east of the Ural Mountains.
It is widely believed that Russia was using the case as a bargaining chip all along, in order to free high level Russian detainees in the West, just like the prisoner swap involving Brittney Griner and Viktor Bout played out.
As for Marine veteran Paul Whelan, who was issued a 16-year sentence in 2020 on charges of espionage – which the US government condemned as false and unfair – his family had long complained that his case didn’t get the attention from Washington that it deserved. But his fate appears to have suddenly and drastically changed for the better.
Could it be that Tucker Carlson’s big interview with President Vladimir Putin had a part to play, or got the ball rolling in the prisoner deal?
Tucker Carlson spent roughly 10 to 15 minutes imploring Vladimir Putin to release the WSJ’s Evan Gershkovich, vehemently arguing why it’s unjust to keep him — in a way that no corporate journalist would ever dare do with Biden about Assange. https://t.co/YWZXNbRtS7 pic.twitter.com/xsLsdUFwq8
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) February 8, 2024
Footage has emerged showing that the prisoner exchanged happened in Turkey…
NOW: Prisoner exchange held in Ankara Esenboğa Airport, Türkiye under the coordination of the Turkish Intelligence Service (MIT).
U.S. & Russian jets in Ankara. https://t.co/21TewE8ioe pic.twitter.com/jRLlxw2nxR
— Clash Report (@clashreport) August 1, 2024
The below is a potential list of persons involved, but is still unconfirmed as the situation is developing…
American Prisoners to be Released:
- Evan Gershkovich: Wall Street Journal reporter arrested in March 2023, charged with espionage.
- Paul Whelan: Marine veteran arrested in December 2018, sentenced to 16 years for espionage charges.
- Alsu Kurmasheva: Russian-American radio journalist detained in June 2023 for allegedly spreading false information about the Russian army.
Other Prisoners Involved:
- At least 12 political prisoners held in Russia are expected to be released to Germany.
- Eight Russian nationals are to be returned to Russia, including some with suspected ties to Russian intelligence.
- Vadim Krasikov, a convicted murderer serving a life sentence in Germany, is expected to be part of the swap.
- Vladimir Kara-Murza, a Kremlin critic and Washington Post contributor, is expected to be flown to the U.S.
developing…
