American journalist Evan Gershkovich and Marine veteran Paul Whelan were two of four former detainees who returned to U.S. soil after their release from Russia on Thursday evening.
A flight bringing the freed Americans as part of a significant prisoner exchange touched down at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, welcomed by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the runway.
“Welcome back,” Biden told reporters on the ground after spending time with the recently released individuals. “There’s nothing we cannot achieve when we unite. Nothing… we are the United States of America.”
INSIDE THE PRISONER SWAP THAT FREED WSJ REPORTER EVAN GERSHKOVICH FROM RUSSIAN CUSTODY
Evan Gershkovich, accompanied by his mother Ella Milman, smiles upon arriving at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on August 1, 2024. (ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and Alsu Kurmasheva were the three Americans released, along with Vladimir Kara-Murza, who holds a U.S. green card.
The freed individuals did not address the media; instead, they were embraced by family and friends. Gershkovich was spotted hugging numerous individuals, possibly including colleagues from the Wall Street Journal. The recently freed prisoners are now set to fly to San Antonio, Texas, for additional medical assessments.
In her remarks, Vice President Harris noted, “This is an extraordinary day. I’m deeply grateful to our president for his efforts. This is an amazing day, and you can see that reflected in the families.”
WHITE HOUSE TAKES FULL CREDIT FOR SECURING THE RELEASE OF AMERICANS INCORRECTLY DETAINED IN RUSSIA: ‘VINTAGE JOE BIDEN’
President Joe Biden welcomes Paul Whelan, who has just returned from Russia, on his arrival at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on August 1, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Reuters)
Gershkovich, a 32-year-old journalist for the Wall Street Journal, was detained on March 29, 2023, while covering a story in the Ural Mountains’ Yekaterinburg. He faced charges of espionage.
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Whelan had been imprisoned since December 2018 on espionage-related accusations that he and the U.S. maintain are unfounded.
In the exchange involving 24 prisoners across various nations, Russia negotiated the release of eight individuals held in the U.S. in return for the Americans.
The prisoners released by the U.S. included Vadim Krasikov from Germany; Artem Viktorovich Dultsev and Anna Valerevna Dultseva from Slovenia; Mikhail Valeryevich Mikushin from Norway; Pavel Alekseyevich Rubtsov from Poland; Roman Seleznev, Vadislav Klyushin, and Vadim Konoshchenock from the U.S.
