Russia Frees Evan Gershkovich, Other Americans And Dissidents In Massive Prisoner Swap

Three imprisoned American citizens and one American green-card holder have been released by Russia as part of a massive prisoner exchange deal involving multiple countries, President Joe Biden confirmed Thursday.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, radio journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, and journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza are among those on their way home, Biden said in a statement.

“All told, we’ve negotiated the release of 16 people from Russia — including five Germans and seven Russian citizens who were political prisoners in their own country. Some of these women and men have been unjustly held for years. All have endured unimaginable suffering and uncertainty. Today, their agony is over,” he said.

The prisoner exchange, described as the largest East-West prisoner swap since the Cold War, took place at an airport in Ankara, Turkey, on Thursday, and involved people from seven different countries, The New York Times reported.

Biden credited U.S. allies — particularly Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway and Turkey ― for their assistance in the negotiations, saying they are “a powerful example of why it’s vital to have friends in this world whom you can trust and depend upon.”

“Our alliances make Americans safer,” he added.

In all, the U.S. and its allies returned eight Russian nationals as part of the deal, including individuals with suspected ties to Russian intelligence, the BBC reported. Russia’s prisoners were already en route to destinations outside the country, Bloomberg News reported Thursday morning, citing people familiar with the situation.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken credited “the extraordinary efforts of countless people in the State Department and across our