Russia Frees Jailed American Stephen Hubbard, 74, After Trump Plea During Witkoff Visit
Russia freed Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old former Michigan teacher jailed for more than four years on mercenary charges, during U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff's visit to St. Petersburg. President Trump said he personally asked Vladimir Putin for the release and that the U.S. gave up nothing in return.
Russia on Wednesday released Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old American former teacher who had been jailed for more than four years on charges of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine, during a visit to St. Petersburg by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.
President Donald Trump said he had asked Russian President Vladimir Putin during a phone call last week to free Hubbard, and that unlike earlier releases, the United States did not have to give up anyone in return. “Welcome home, Stephen, it’s great to have you back,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post, adding that Hubbard was on his way home following Witkoff’s visit.
Witkoff thanked Putin in person at their St. Petersburg meeting, saying the president and the whole nation sent their thanks. “Because of you, he’s going home to his family,” Witkoff told him.
A closed trial and a disputed conviction
Hubbard was sentenced in 2024 to nearly seven years in prison after a closed trial. Russian prosecutors said he had signed a contract with the Ukrainian military after Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 and fought alongside Kyiv’s forces until he was captured two months later. The U.S. government under the Biden administration designated Hubbard as wrongfully detained.
His family and lawyers denied the charges. His sister, Patricia Hubbard Fox, told Reuters last month that he was “so non-military” and had never owned a gun. In August, the hostage advocacy group Hostage Aid Worldwide posted what it said was an open letter from Hubbard Fox to Trump, in which she said her brother had been subjected to “constant beatings, torture and starvation” while in custody.
Homebound while other Americans stay behind
Witkoff said Hubbard was at Pulkovo airport in St. Petersburg after his release. The New York Post reported, citing CBS News, that he will fly to Texas, where he will receive medical treatment at a military hospital.
Hubbard is the second American freed by Russia in roughly two months, following the release in August of Marine veteran Robert Gilman, who had been gravely ill and was imprisoned on disputed charges of assaulting a police officer. Other Americans remain jailed in Russia, including some with serious illnesses, the Associated Press reported.
The release came during Witkoff’s St. Petersburg trip, where he met Putin to discuss the war in Ukraine. Witkoff had met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Norway the day before, and was expected to carry ideas from that meeting into the St. Petersburg talks, according to the AP. The AP also reported that the release came as the Trump administration waived sanctions on Russia imposed under a bill Congress passed to support Ukraine, and announced a deal to import Russian diesel.
Reporting based on coverage by the Associated Press and the New York Post.
