August 1: Russia prisoner exchange news

A Russian Plane, believed to be carrying released Russian prisoners, leaves the Ankara Airport, Turkey, on August 1.

The plane carrying Americans freed during a prisoner swap with Russia has entered United States airspace, according to FlightRadar24 data. 

It crossed into US airspace offshore near Nantucket, Massachusetts. 

The plane took off from Ankara, Turkey around 8:00 p.m. local time (1700 UTC) and has been in the air for over 9 hours. 

The freed Americans on the flight have been flying for over 12 hours today: over nine hours on this flight, in addition to the nearly four-hour flight from Moscow to Ankara.

The plane is expected to land at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland after 11:30 p.m. local time. 

CNN had confirmed this was the aircraft carrying the Americans because Evan Gershkovich was seen boarding it in Ankara, Turkey. 

Family members of released Americans Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva will be on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews to greet their loved ones when they land.

A US official told CNN that they expect to see the same group that was in the Oval Office earlier on Thursday to hear the news of their release directly from President Joe Biden. 

Here’s who is expected to be on the tarmac:

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The sister of American citizen Marc Fogel — who was sentenced to 14 years at a hard labor camp in Russia on drug charges — said she was hoping her brother would be involved in Thursday’s prisoner swap.

But when her brother called her yesterday and said he was still in the Russian city Rybinsk, she realized that “things were not going well” in terms of getting him back home to America.

“It’s been a rollercoaster, no sleep,” she said. “I feel like we’ve been kind of collectively stabbed in the back.”

Fogel was not included in the prisoner swap that freed 24 detainees on Thursday, including American journalist Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan. A senior administration official said the Biden administration had sought the release of Fogel, but was unsuccessful. 

“We absolutely wanted Marc to be included, but it just wasn’t going to happen,” the official said, insisting that the administration would only “keep redoubling our efforts” to see Fogel and others released.

Fogel, who worked in Moscow as a teacher, was arrested on drug charges in 2021 after entering the country with cannabis. His family and lawyer have said he was carrying it for medical purposes that had been recommended by a doctor to treat “severe spinal pain.”

The plane bringing the freed Americans back to the United States has entered Canadian airspace, according to FlightRadar24 data. 

The plane is expected to land at Joint Base Andrews after 11:00 p.m .ET. 

CNN confirmed this was the aircraft carrying the Americans because Evan Gershkovich was seen boarding it in Ankara, Turkey.  

Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens spoke with former US Marine Paul Whelan by phone on Friday, a source familiar said. Whelan was at his remote prison camp in Mordovia at the time of the call.

Carstens was not able to tell him any details about the imminent swap, but was able to get a sense of how Whelan was feeling, which was optimistic, the source said.

President Joe Biden pauses before he addresses the nation from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington,DC, on Wednesday, July 24, about his decision to drop his Democratic presidential reelection bid.

When US President Joe Biden sat behind the Resolute Desk to address the nation on his decision to exit the 2024 presidential race and end his career in public service, he knew a deal to secure the release of Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan and Alsu Kurmasheva was imminent.

From the Oval Office on July 24, Biden told the American people his administration in its final months would be “working around the clock to bring home Americans being unjustly detained all around the world.”

A call between Biden and the prime minister of Slovenia three days earlier to discuss the status of a Russian prisoner in that country’s custody represented the last leader-level call and “final puzzle piece,” in the words of one senior official, before the discussions turned to the logistics of choreographing the arrival of a handful of planes from seven countries on a tarmac in Ankara, Turkey. Months of painstaking negotiations involving multiple countries, dozens of high-value individuals, and more than a few false starts, were nearing a conclusion. 

As Biden negotiated for American citizens to begin a new chapter of their lives, he was also concurrently negotiating an end to the chapter that had dominated his: Fifty-four years in public service that, he would soon announce, would end in January. The intersection of those moments, according to national security adviser Jake Sullivan, was merely a coincidence. 

“The different elements coming together was a feature of the diplomacy and the decision-making of each of the countries involved,” Sullivan said. “It wasn’t about American politics, the American political calendar, the president’s thinking on other issues.” 

Sullivan argued the president wanted the deal quickly, but not for his own sake.  

“He was thinking about it from the families’ perspective, which is: Every day is a lost day,” Sullivan said. 

Brittney Griner, center, shoots as Belgium's Elisa Ramette and Belgium's Emma Meesseman defend during a women's basketball game at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, August 1, in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France.

Following the historic prisoner swap between Russia and the West, WNBA great and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner told the Associated Press that she was “head-over-heels happy for the families right now.”

“I know they have an amazing group of people that are going to help them out — them and their families,” she continued. Griner is in Paris playing for Team USA’s women’s basketball team at the Summer Olympics.

Remember: Griner spent almost 300 days in custody in Russia having been detained in February 2022 and sentenced to nine years in prison after authorities found cannabis oil in her luggage. 

The US State Department deemed Griner had been wrongfully detained. She was released in December 2022 in a prisoner swap involving Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Principal deputy national security adviser Jon Finer appears on CNN on Thursday, August 1.

The US-Russia relationship, a top US national security official said, remains “in a very difficult place” after a historic prisoner swap Tuesday that included three American citizens and one permanent resident. 

“There was no trust involved in this relationship or this negotiation. Everything had to be verified multiple times,” Finer added. 

Pressed on whether the move incentivized Russia and other hostile states to wrongfully detain Americans in the future, Finer said the US will “not apologize” for its efforts to bring Americans home. 

He pointed to travel warnings, the tool of sanctions for countries that wrongfully detain Americans, and diplomacy, reiterating that it is “fundamentally dangerous for Americans to be present in Russia.”

Finer said the freed Americans “seemed in good spirits,” adding that he didn’t have additional information to share about their conditions.

Finer also addressed Marc Fogel, who is detained in Russia and was not part of the deal. He agreed with a statement from Fogel’s family that it is a “complete injustice” that Fogel remains held and said the administration will “continue to work toward Marc’s release and toward the release of other Americans who are held captive in various countries around the world.”

Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva — the three American citizens who are on their way home to the United States after being released as part of a historic prisoner swap — are currently joined on the plane by multiple medics, a psychologist and US government officials including representatives from the National Security Council and State Department, a US official told CNN. 

Once they land at Joint Base Andrews, they will be greeted by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. The three Americans will also have the opportunity to spend time with their families. 

Afterward, all three and their family members will board a flight to San Antonio. There, they will be taken to Brooke Army Medical Center to undergo medical evaluation and will recieve whatever care they need for as long as they need, the US official said.  

This is typical protocol for wrongfully detained Americans who return home. WNBA player Brittney Griner also went to BAMC right after she was released from Russian detention in December of 2022.  

They will also have the option to participate in a Defense Department program called PISA (Post Isolation Support Activities), which is meant to help them readjust now that they are back in the United States. Many recently freed US wrongful detainees have undergone this program to help them acclimate back to normal life. The length of that program varies but its maximum is 19 days.

Some planes involved in the Russian prisoner swap have landed in Germany, Poland and Norway.

Two planes landed in Cologne, Germany, one landed at Poland’s Chopin Airport in Warsaw, and one landed at Oslo’s Gardermoen Airport, according to FlightRadar 24 data. 

Earlier on Thursday, one plane flew from Baden-Baden Karlsruhe Airport in southern Germany to Ankara, Turkey. Another plane left Dulles International Airport, outside of Washington, DC, late Wednesday night for Ankara, Turkey. 

The plane in Germany: Former high-ranking Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) colonel Vadim Krasikov, was in German custody. He shot and killed former Chechen fighter Zelimkhan “Tornike” Khangoshvili in Berlin’s Kleiner Tiergarten “execution style,” in broad daylight. 

Five German citizens were released as part of the prisoner swap.

The plane in Poland: Pavel Rubtsov, a Russian spy in Polish custody, was also part of the prisoner exchange. Rubtsov was a Russian spy living in Poland and was arrested in February 2022 according to Polish state news agency PAP. He was living under the false pretence of being a Spanish journalist called Pablo Gonzales.

The plane in Norway: Mikhail Mikushin, who was in Norwegian custody, was arrested in the country in 2022 and was working at the University of Tromsø in the Arctic Circle, pretending to be a Brazilian researcher.

Six of the seven planes involved in the prisoner swap have now landed, with the remaining plane en route to Joint Base Andrews outside of Washington, DC.

This post has been updated with additional information.

The family of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich expressed relief and gratitude to the Biden administration after he was released Thursday in a historic US-Russia prisoner swap. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, greets released Russian prisoners and relatives at the Vnukovo government airport outside Moscow, Russia, on Thursday, August 1.

Russian President Vladimir Putin greeted the Russians involved in a prisoner swap upon their return to Moscow in the late hours of Thursday, according to the Kremlin.

Putin said the returnees will be presented with state awards and he thanked them for their loyalty to their home country.

Putin promised to meet again with the eight returnees and talk about their future.

President Joe Biden spoke individually with the leaders of Turkey, Norway, Poland, Slovenia and Germany on Thursday to “thank them for their partnership” in the historic prisoner swap with Russia, according to the White House.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former US Marine Paul Whelan and Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva were among the two dozen detainees included in the deal.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said earlier that the president would be making these calls to those involved in the prison swap and commended the president for his “intricate statecraft.”

A plane involved in the prisoner swap has landed at Slovenia’s Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport, according to FlightRadar 24 data. 

Earlier on Thursday, the same plane ferried prisoners to the Esenboga Airport in Ankara, Turkey. 

Two Russians spies – Artem Dultsev and Anna Dultseva — were in Slovenian custody and were part of the prisoner swap.

Dultsev was posing as an IT professional named Ludvig Gish, and pled guilty to espionage at a court in Ljubljana on Wednesday and was sentenced to more than a year and half in prison, which the court said was equivalent to time spent. He was set to be deported to Russia and was banned from entering Slovenia for five years.

Dultseva pled guilty to espionage alongside Dultsev. She posed as an art dealer and gallery owner and is thought to be married to Dultsev. She went by the name Maria Rosa Mayer Munos. Like Dultsev, she was sentenced to time served and deportation.

President Joe Biden is expected to greet the freed Americans at Joint Base Andrews on Thursday evening, according to updated guidance from the White House. 

Biden is expected to be joined by Vice President Kamala Harris.

The president and the vice president are expected to be at the base at around 11:30 p.m. ET, the White House guidance said.

Here’s a look at the moment news that Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was released from Russia broke in the Journal’s New York newsroom.

The Wall Street Journal’s editor-in-chief Emma Tucker reacts to the news of Evan Gershkovich’s release. The Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was released into U.S. custody after a prisoner swap with Russia on Thursday, August 1.

The Wall Street Journal editors and reporters listen to Emma Tucker announce Evan Gershkovich’s release.

The Wall Street Journal’s Emma Tucker reacts to the news of Evan Gershkovich’s release.

Emma Tucker celebrates the successful prisoner exchange in Turkey between the United States and Russia.

The Wall Street Journal’s Emma Tucker reacts to the news of Evan Gershkovich’s release.

The six US-registered planes involved in the prisoner swap in Ankara are heading to Slovenia, Germany, Norway, Poland and the United States, according to flight plans reviewed by CNN.

Two planes are en route to Cologne, Germany, and are set to arrive around 10 p.m. local time. One plane is heading to Oslo, Norway, and is expected to arrive around 11 p.m. local time. 

Another plane is flying towards Ljubljana, Slovenia, and is expected to arrive around 11 p.m. local time. And one plane is traveling to Warsaw, Poland, where it will land around 10 p.m. local time.

The sixth plane is en route to Joint Base Andrews, outside of Washington, DC, and is expected to land around 11:30 p.m. local time.

Russian president Vladimir Putin received the Russian citizens released in the prisoner swap as they disembarked a plane upon arrival in Moscow from Ankara, Turkey.

Russian president Vladimir Putin receives the Russian citizens released in the prisoner swap as they disembarked the plane upon arrival in Moscow from Ankara on Thursday, August 1.

The plane carrying Russian citizens released in the prisoner swap on Thursday has arrived in Moscow from Ankara, according to state news agency Ria Novosti.

According to state news agency TASS a red carpet was rolled out for the arrival.

Video released by the Russian Security Service (FSB) shows Evan Gershkovich and Rico Krieger on board of the plane on their way to Turkey.

Just two weeks ago, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was sentenced to 16 years in a Russian prison. Today, he is flying home a free man.

In a lengthy piece published after Gershkovich and two other Americans were released, the Journal reported on the global efforts to strike the prisoner swap deal.

Have a read of the last two paragraphs, detailing some of Gershkovich’s final acts in a Russian cell:

All seven aircraft that were involved in the prisoner swap between Russia and the West in Turkey’s Ankara on Thursday are now airborne, according to flight tracking data from ADS-B Exchange.

Six of the flights that landed at Ankara are US-registered planes and the seventh is a Russian flight. 

The Russian flight is already back in Russian airspace and is expected to land around 9:45 p.m. local time.

The destination of the six US-registered planes is currently unknown, but the tracking data shows they are heading northeast and flying across Europe.

Yulia Navalnaya, the wife of the late Russian opposition politician Alexey Navalny, and his team commended the prisoner exchange with Russia.

Navalnaya applauded the “very long and difficult work” it took to make a deal and noted that “we still have a lot of people to fight for.”

Kira Yarmysh, Navalny’s former press secretary, said US Vice President Kamala Harris had called Navalnaya to discuss the exchange and express her support. Navalnaya thanked Harris for the assistance of the US in organizing the exchange, Yarmysh said.

Navalny’s team wrote on Telegram that some of the released prisoners had been detained due to “their resistance and to intimidate others, while others were taken hostage just to replenish the exchange fund.”

The team added that Navalny was supposed to be included in the exchange “but Putin killed him.” Navalny died in an Arctic prison in February. The Kremlin denied any involvement in his death.

In a briefing Thursday, US National Security adviser Jake Sullivan confirmed that the deal was supposed to include Navalny before his death.

NATO and the European Union welcomed the release of prisoners from Russian captivity, including US nationals Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich.

European Council chief Charles Michel heralded the release of the 16 individuals “unjustly jailed by the Russian regime,” responding to the news on his official X account. 

Michel thanked those in Europe who “helped to make the diplomatic deal possible,” outlining the EU’s commitment to continue “supporting and standing for all those illegally detained in Russia and elsewhere.” 

A NATO spokesperson also commended the efforts of several NATO allies who helped to broker “the deal that secured their freedom.” 

A photo released by the US government today shows Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva and former US Marine Paul Whelan posing behind an American flag in Turkey shortly after they were released as part of the historic prisoner swap between Russia, the US and other nations.

The trio, along with other recently freed Americans, are now headed back to the United States.

Check out the image:

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan speaks during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, on Thursday, August 1.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday described Marc Fogel, an American sentenced to 14 years of hard labor in Russia, as “wrongfully detained.” This is the first time a United States official has categorized him as such.

Fogel was not included in the prisoner swap that freed 24 detainees on Thursday, including American journalist Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan.

The State Department has not publicly designated Fogel as wrongfully detained but has called for his release.

Some background: Fogel, who worked in Moscow as a teacher, was arrested on drug charges in 2021 and given a 14-year prison sentence in 2022 after entering the country with cannabis. His family and lawyer have said he was carrying it for medical purposes that had been recommended by a doctor to treat “severe spinal pain.”

Fogel’s family had been urging the Biden administration to designate him as wrongfully detained, which would trigger formal diplomatic efforts to secure his release.

CNN’s Jennifer Hansler and Kylie Atwood contributed reporting to this post.

US President Joe Biden shared a photo on social media of the newly freed Americans on a plane and said they have “begun their journeys back into the arms of their families.”

“After enduring unimaginable suffering and uncertainty, the Americans detained in Russia are safe, free, and have begun their journeys back into the arms of their families,” Biden wrote on X.

The released Americans are headed to the United States and the historic prisoner swap between Russia and the West is complete, a Turkish security source previously told CNN.

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) thanked “competent government agencies” and “foreign partners” for Thursday’s prisoner swap with the west, according to state news agency TASS

Eight Russian citizens are being returned to Russia as part of the deal, the news agency said.

“Russian citizens were exchanged for a group of individuals who acted in the interests of foreign states to the detriment of the security of the Russian Federation,” the statement read, according to TASS.

Jake Sullivan reacts while addressing the press during a briefing at the White House on Thursday.

President Joe Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan fought back tears as he reflected on the long road that led to the Thursday release of three Americans and one American green-card holder.

“Excuse me—today was a very good day, and we’re going to build on it, drawing inspiration and continued courage from it for all of those who are held hostage or wrongfully detained around the world.”

Sullivan thanked colleagues across the national security apparatus, calling the prisoner swap “the culmination of a monumental level of effort and level of skill by my teammates across the national security enterprise.” 

“These are dedicated, talented professionals who are not in the headlines, who don’t get to stand at a podium like this one, and it was at the president’s direction that they built and pulled off the most intricate, expansive deal of its kind in memory,” Sullivan told reporters.

He said “every American should be proud to have those kind of people standing up on their behalf and on behalf of American security.” 

Sullivan was asked if he had become emotional when he learned that the detained Americans had safely made it out of Russia.

The mood in the Oval Office was “overjoyed” as US President Joe Biden told the families of three American citizens and one American green card holder that their loved ones would “finally be coming home,” a top White House national security adviser told reporters.

“I have the honor and pleasure of joining the president this morning in the Oval Office as he shared the wonderful news with families,” National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters from the White House briefing room Thursday. 

He said the group “spoke with Paul, Evan, Alsu and Vladimir, who were on the tarmac in Ankara with US officials where the exchange happened.” 

Sullivan heavily credited Biden personally for the achievement, saying, “Today’s exchange is a feat of diplomacy that honestly could only be achieved by a leader like Joe Biden.”

The Russian special squadron plane, carrying Russian citizens swapped in a prisoner exchange in Ankara, Turkey, is expected to land at Moscow’s Vnukovo International Airport later this evening.

FlightRadar24 confirmed to CNN that the plane has filed a flight plan that terminates at the airport in southwestern Moscow. It’s expected to land there around 9:45 p.m. local time.

US President Joe Biden is reaching out to world leaders on Thursday afternoon to “give personal thanks” to the nations involved in the historic prison swap that released Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan.

“While I’m standing at this podium, the president is reaching out to give personal thanks to the leaders of Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway and Turkey,” National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said during Thursday’s press briefing. 

Turkey said it played a mediator role in the swap, which involved 24 detainees and seven countries. A host of Russian dissidents were also freed while in return Moscow got a convicted Russian assassin jailed in Germany.

Sullivan also praised the “intricate statecraft” and the president’s involvement in the biggest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War.

US President Joe Biden shared a photo Thursday featuring the families of detained Americans who were released as part of a prisoner swap on Thursday.

The photo included the families of Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, Alsu Kurmasheva and Vladimir Kara-Murza during an Oval Office call with their newly released family members.

People lay flowers at the grave of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny at the Borisov Cemetery in Moscow, on March 2.

An ally of the late Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has praised Thursday’s prisoner exchange but lamented that it could not include Navalny, who died in February.

“But Putin decided to ‘flip the board over,’ decided that he would never let Navalny go. And he killed him literally a couple of days before the exchange could take place,” Volkov said.

Navalny died in an Arctic prison, where he was serving a more than 20-year sentence on charges he dismissed as politically motivated. The Russian prison service said Navalny had “felt unwell after a walk” and died suddenly. The Kremlin denied involvement.

After his death, it was reported that negotiations to release Navalny had entered their “final stage,” and that he was “days away” from being freed.

Volkov – who was attacked with a hammer in Lithuania in the weeks after Navalny’s death, in an incident the country’s intelligence agency blamed on Russia – said Thursday’s prisoner exchange would be bittersweet.

“Today we rejoice at the release of the political prisoners, Putin’s hostages, who suffered in Putin’s gulag,” he said. “But it will still be joy with tears in our eyes.”

In a briefing Thursday afternoon, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan confirmed that the deal was intended to include Navalny.

This post has been updated with additional comments from the White House.

A Russian government plane and other jets are seen on the tarmac at Esenboga Airport in Ankara, Turkey, on Thursday, August 1.

Flight tracking data from FlightRadar24 and ADS-B Exchange are helping show exactly where the flights involved in Thursday’s prisoner exchange between Russia and the West originated. 

The data shows that seven flights landed at Ankara’s Esenboga Airport between 3:50 p.m. local time and 4:45 p.m. local time.  

Six of the flights that landed at Ankara were US-registered planes and the seventh was the Russian flight. 

About the flights:

The Russian plane used during the prisoner exchange in Ankara, Turkey, has returned to Russian airspace, flight tracking data from ADS-B Exchange shows.

European leaders are reacting to the historic prisoner swap on Thursday that resulted in the release of 24 detainees from Russia.

Here’s what some world leaders said:

Secretary of State Antony Blinken has spoken with the newly freed Americans and said they “all sounded strong — strong in voice, strong in mind, strong in spirit.”

Blinken spoke to the press while on a refuel stop in Japan as he traveled back to Washington, DC, from Mongolia.

The top US diplomat had spoken several times with Paul Whelan in the past but had not spoken with the other released Americans: Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva.

Blinken, asked whether there was concern about the release of Vadim Krasikov, a convicted Russian assassin, said these are “always incredibly hard decisions that the President’s demonstrated repeatedly he’s prepared to make.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin had signed decrees to pardon those released in Thursday’s prisoner swap, according to the Kremlin.

The decrees pardoned Americans Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, Alsu Kurmasheva, and permanent resident Vladimir Kara-Murza.

Putin also pardoned German citizens Kevin Lick, Demuri (Dieter) Voronin, Lilia Chanysheva, Vadim Ostanin, Ksenia Fadeeva, Alexandra Skochilenko, Ilya Yashin, Andrei Pivovarov and Oleg Orlov.

The Kremlin thanked Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko for pardoning German citizen Rico Krieger who was previously sentenced to death in Belarus and was part of the prisoner swap. The Belarusian presidency announced on Tuesday that Krieger had been pardoned. 

This post has been updated with more details on the decrees Putin signed.

US Vice President Kamala Harris and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz walk together during a bilateral meeting at the Munich Security Conference in February.

When Vice President Kamala Harris attended the Munich Security Conference in February, the release of the very Americans who are on their way home on Thursday were top of mind. 

As Harris was wrapping up a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the conference, the vice president asked all staff to leave the room for what US officials sometimes refer to as a “restricted bilateral meeting.” Just one aide each for the vice president and the chancellor remained.

It was in this private conversation that Harris emphasized that the release of convicted Russian assassin Vadim Krasikov who was jailed in Germany would be critical to a deal, a White House official tells CNN. Harris pressed Scholz to facilitate Krasikov’s release – US officials have since acknowledged that he was the “biggest fish” that the Russians wanted. 

During that same trip, Harris also asked for a meeting with Prime Minster Robert Golob of Slovenia. The main purpose of that meeting, the White House official said, was to press the prime minister on moving forward with the release of two Russian nationals that were in Slovenian custody that the US had identified as being a top priority for the Russians.

The official readout of Harris-Golob meeting from February made no mention of the two leaders discussing the prisoner swap. 

As CNN previously reported, Biden – as recently as two weekends ago moments before he announced that he would be ending his 2024 campaign, had called the Slovenian prime minister to urge him to get the deal across the finish line.  

President Joe Biden said he owes “a great sense of gratitude” to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and defended the “tough” decision to swap political prisoners for convicted criminals.

“But everybody stepped up, Poland stepped up, Slovenia stepped up, Turkey stepped up. And it matters to have relationships. It really does.”

When asked by a reporter, Biden said Germany had asked for “nothing” in return for their cooperation.

When asked if he was worried that the prisoner swap could incentivize aggressors to kidnap Americans, Biden said his administration would warn Americans “not to go to certain places, tell them what’s at risk – what’s at stake.”

Asked how he weight the decision to swap convicted criminals with wrongfully detained people, Biden simply said: “I got home innocent people.”

The German government has said it did not take the decision “lightly” to free Vadim Krasikov, a former FSB officer serving a life sentence in Germany for the murder of a Chechen fighter in broad daylight in a Berlin park in 2019.

Vadim Krasikov

Germany’s government has explained why it took the controversial decision to free Vadim Krasikov, the Russian hitman jailed for murder, in Thursday’s prisoner exchange.

Krasikov, a former high-ranking FSB colonel, was convicted of murdering a former Chechen fighter in a Berlin park in 2019, and was later sentenced to life in a German prison.

In a statement Thursday evening, government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit said Germany had weighed its “obligation” to keep its citizens safe against the need to help its allies to free “innocent people” detained in Russia, like Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.

In a lengthy piece published after Gershkovich was freed, the WSJ reported that the fate of Krasikov was crucial to the deal, and revealed the painstaking efforts to persuade a skeptical German government to agree to release the KGB hitman.

Eventually, the White House agreed to send a formal request to the German government requesting the release of Krasikov as part of the prisoner exchange, a move that gave the German government diplomatic cover, the Journal reported.

CIA Director Bill Burns listens during a House Intelligence Committee hearing in March.

CIA Director Bill Burns traveled to Turkey recently to discuss the swap with United States and Turkish officials, a senior administration official said.

The massive US-Russia prisoner swap was a “logistical miracle” and the Turkish government was “extremely helpful,” the official said. 

As the swap was being carried out, there were multiple planes on the Turkish tarmac as a small number of embassy personnel at the US embassy in Turkey monitored the complicated operation, the official said. 

The most senior US official on the tarmac was an intelligence official, the official said. 

Turkey was picked as a partner in this exchange because they have been involved in a number of negotiations involving Russia, such as the black sea grain initiative, and the prisoner swap that released Brittany Griner, the official said.

American journalist Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan were among the 24 detainees released as part of a complex prisoner swap between Russia, the US and other Western nations.

A host of Russian dissidents were also freed while in return Moscow got a former FSB colonel convicted of murder as well as several individuals accused of spying or cybercrime.

Here’s who was part of the prisoner swap:

The Americans released in the historic prisoner swap are now in the air and en route to the United States, according to a senior administration official.

The historic prisoner swap between Russia and the West is complete, a Turkish security source told CNN.

The planes involved in transferring the freed people are in the process of leaving Turkey’s Ankara airport.

President Joe Biden told reporters at the White House that he did not speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of efforts to secure the release of Americans and dissidents held by Russia Thursday.

Pressed on if he plans to speak with the Russian strongman, Biden told reporters in the State Dining Room, “I don’t need to speak with Putin.” 

The last public interaction the two leaders had was in February 2022, just two weeks before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. According to a White House readout at the time, Biden “reiterated that a further Russian invasion of Ukraine would produce widespread human suffering and diminish Russia’s standing,” at the time.

Since then, Biden has referred to Putin in increasingly disparaging terms. In a June interview with ABC, the president told David Muir Putin was “not a decent man — he’s a dictator, and he’s struggling to make sure he holds his country together while still keeping this assault going.”

US President Joe Biden embraces Miriam Butorin, the daughter of Aslu Kurmasheva, at the White House on Thursday.

President Joe Biden led the families of Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, Alsu Kurmasheva and Vladimir Kara-Murza, as well as press gathered in the room, in a rendition of “Happy Birthday” to Kurmasheva’s almost 13-year-old daughter Miriam Butorin. 

“Tomorrow’s a big day, the 13th birthday of Miriam,” Biden said. “You all know we have a tradition in the Biden family, we sing ‘happy birthday’ on every birthday. Ready – all of you.”

The president called Butorin over to stand by him and put his arm around her while he led the group in singing to her. 

“Now she gets to celebrate with her mom. That’s what this is all about families — able to be together again like they should have been all along,” Biden said after singing. Butorin walked back to her family and embraced them after standing next to the president. 

Kurmasheva, a 47-year-old Russian-American journalist, was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison after being convicted of spreading false information about the Russian army. She was sentenced on the same day that a court convicted Gershkovich.

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00:41 - Source: cnn

Asked about how he justifies releasing Russian prisoners in exchange for Americans, Biden said all that matters is that he “got home innocent people.”

In exchange for 24 American detainees, a host of Russian dissidents were also freed, including a former FSB colonel convicted of murder as well as several individuals accused of spying or cybercrime.

Biden talked about his own loss of family members and uncertainty in his life, saying, “It matters.”

President Joe Biden celebrated the power of alliances in the years long efforts toward Thursday’s historic prisoner swap, cementing a hallmark of his presidency – bolstering US relationships abroad.

He called the deal a “feat of diplomacy and friendship.”

“Multiple countries helped get this done. They joined a difficult, complex negotiation at my request,” Biden said, nodding to his own role in the process.

He said it would “not have been possible” without Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Turkey, who “all stepped up and stood with us” and “made bold and brave decisions for these prisoners.”

“I particularly owe a great sense of gratitude to the (German) chancellor (Olaf Scholz). The demands they were making of me required me to get some significant concessions from Germany which they originally concluded they could not do because of the person in question,” Biden said.

Biden, when asked by a reporter, added that Germany had asked for “nothing” in order to secure their cooperation.

Without naming Donald Trump, Biden offered a message about the importance of US alliances, an implicit criticism of his former political rival’s isolationism.

Biden was also asked to respond to comments from former Trump, who boasted after the 2022 release of WNBA star Brittany Griner that he was able to secure the release of hostages, “without paying any money, or giving up anything.”

“Why didn’t he do it when he was president?” Biden retorted.

This post has been updated with additional comments from Biden.

When asked whether prisoner swaps incentivize countries to detain Americans, President Joe Biden said Americans should not travel to these places.

He said his administration is “advising people not to go certain places” and to tell them “what’s at risk, what’s at stake.”

President Joe Biden took a swipe at former President Donald Trump when asked if he had a message for him following the historic prisoner exchange between Russia and the West.

“President Trump has said repeatedly that he could have gotten the hostages out without giving anything in exchange. What do you say to that? What do you say to President Trump now?” a reporter asked Biden.

US President Joe Biden delivers remarks on a prisoner swap with Russia from the State Dining Room of the White House on Thursday.

US President Joe Biden said the prisoners that have been released from Russian prisons can now “live safely abroad.”

Biden reasserted that the release of Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, Alsu Kurmasheva and Vladmir Kara-Murza would not have been possible without the US’ allies: Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway and Turkey.

The president said one of the Russian detainees ran a human rights organization called Memorial while another was arrested for voicing opposition to the war in Ukraine. Four others worked with Alexey Navalny, a Russian political opposition leader.

President Joe Biden said he began work on trying to release Americans wrongfully detained in Russia before he officially took office.

He said those cases were “inherited from the prior administration.”

“As of today, my administration’s brought home over 70 Americans who were wrongfully detained or held hostage abroad — many since before I took office,” Biden said.

President Joe Biden described the journalists who were released from Russia as part of a prisoner swap.

He said they were convicted in “show trials” and given long prison terms “with absolutely no legitimate reason whatsoever ever, none.”

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva and Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza, who holds an American green card, were among those released.

Kara-Murza won a Pulitzer Prize for writing about Russia as a contributor of The Washington Post.

“All three falsely accused of being spies,” Biden said.

US President Joe Biden, speaking at the White House surrounded by the family members of US citizens and residents detained in Russia, said it’s a “very good afternoon.”

US President Joe Biden said the American prisoners’ “brutal ordeal is over, and they’re free.”

The president said it was an “incredible relief” for their families.

He said the released Americans were able to speak to their family members over the phone as they traveled to the US.

Champagne bottles popped inside The Wall Street Journal newsroom on Thursday as staffers celebrated the release of their colleague Evan Gershkovich, who was freed in a historic prisoner exchange between the US and Russia.

Emma Tucker, The Journal’s editor-in-chief, delivered the official news of Gershkovich’s freedom to the publication’s New York staff just before noon, after they had confirmed his safety. 

Tucker and Almar Latour, the newspaper’s publisher, said in a joint statement that they are “overwhelmed with relief and elated for Evan and his family, as well as for the others who were released.”

US President Joe Biden, standing alongside family members of the freed prisoners, speaks about the prisoner exchange with Russia, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 1.

US President Joe Biden is speaking at the White House surrounded by family members of US citizens and residents detained in Russia.

President Joe Biden speaks to reporters from the White House.

President Joe Biden is speaking to reporters from the White House following a historic prisoner exchange with Russia and several other countries that included the release of former US Marine Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.

Biden gathered the families of Whelan, Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva and Vladimor Kara-Murza at the White House on Thursday to relay the news that their loved ones were heading home, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said earlier on Thursday.

We’ll bring you the latest updates on Biden’s remarks as we get them here.

The president of the news organization Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty welcomed the news of the release of one of the outlet’s journalists in a prisoner swap.

Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison after being convicted of spreading false information about the Russian army.

“We welcome news of Alsu’s release and are grateful to the American government and all who worked tirelessly to end her unjust treatment by Russia,” RFE/RL President & CEO Stephen Capus said in a statement.

Kurmasheva’s husband, Pavel Butorin, thanked the US government for allowing her to be reunited with her family after being separated for nearly two years.

David Whelan, the brother of Paul Whelan, said his “work as our family spokesperson is over” and Paul can now tell his story.

“It is vital that he be given agency over his life again, something the Kremlin took away for so many years,” he added.

He praised the work of journalists for keeping his brother’s story in the public consciousness.

“I cannot adequately express my deep admiration for your hard work and courage. Some of you were hounded from Russia, or labeled foreign agents, and took great risks to follow Paul’s story,” he said.

“Every story has an ending and this is the end of the story of our family’s advocacy for Paul,” he said.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that three Americans are now on their way back to the US after a massive US-Russia prisoner swap.

Blinken thanked five countries for their support in this historic deal. 

“We are grateful for the support we had from a number of our allies who made this deal possible, in particular Germany, Poland, Norway, and Slovenia. We further appreciate the Turkish government providing a location for the safe return of these individuals to the United States and Germany,” Blinken said.

Blinken said that he has had many “difficult conversations” in recent years when he “told the families of those wrongfully detained in Russia that we would not forget them.”

Blinken also reiterated that pledge to American families whose loved ones are not coming home today: “We will not forget you, and we will not rest until you see your loved ones again,” he said.

Vice President Kamala Harris praised the multinational prisoner swap with Russia that has resulted in the release of Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, saying it gives her “great comfort” to know they’ll soon be reunited with their loved ones.  

Harris is currently in Houston where she will deliver the eulogy at the funeral services for the late congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. 

Alongside the most high-profile Russian prisoner to be released, Vadim Krasikov, here are the other Russians who were part of the exchange:

Vadim Konoshchenok, 48:

Vladislav Klyushin, 43:

Roman Valeryevich Seleznev, 40:

Artem Dultsev (age unknown)

Anna Dultseva (age unknown)

Mikhail Valeryevich Mikushin (age unknown)

Pavel Rubtsov (age unknown)

At least seven Russian oppositions were released as a part of the historic prisoner exchange on Thursday. They are:

Ilya Yashin, 41:

Alexandra Skochilenko, 33:

Oleg Orlov, 71:

Lilia Chanysheva, 42:

Ksenia Fadeeva, 32:

Vadim Ostanin (age unknown):

Andrei Pivovarov (age unknown):

Marc Fogel, an American sentenced to 14 years of hard labor in Russia, is not included in the massive US-Russia prisoner swap, his family’s lawyer Sasha Phillips tells CNN. 

Fogel called his family today from the penal colony in Russia which meant that he was not on his way out of the country, Phillips said. The White House has not called his family, but State Department Deputy Secretary for Management Richard Verma called to tell them the news about an hour ago, Phillips said. 

The news was shocking for the family, who has been working tirelessly to try to make sure that Fogel would be included in any prisoner swap. 

Fogel was charged with smuggling drugs and given a 14-year prison sentence in 2022. His family and lawyer said he was carrying it for medical purposes that had been recommended by a doctor to treat “severe spinal pain.”

Fogel has not been deemed wrongfully detained by the US. He worked for nearly a decade as a history teacher at the Anglo-American School in Moscow, where children of US diplomats were among his students.

Vadim Krasikov, a former high ranking FSB colonel serving a life sentence in German prison.

Vadim Krasikov, a former high-ranking FSB colonel serving a life sentence in a German prison, was on the top of Moscow’s list of Russian prisoners it wanted to exchange.

Krasikov was convicted of the 2019 murder of former Chechen fighter Zelimkhan “Tornike” Khangoshvili in Berlin’s Kleiner Tiergarten.

The German court that convicted Krasikov in 2021 said he acted on behalf of the Russian state, shooting Khangoshvili “execution style” in broad daylight. Khangoshvili fought against Russian forces during the Chechen wars and later relocated to Georgia, where he survived several assassination attempts. Wanted in Russia on terror charges, he was a particular thorn in the side of Ramzan Kadyrov, the Chechen leader and close ally of Putin.

The Kremlin has made no secret of its desire to get Krasikov back to Russia, asking for him to be released in 2022 alongside Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer who was serving a 25-year sentence in the US, in exchange for Whelan and the WNBA star Brittney Griner.

When the US couldn’t get Krasikov released, Moscow refused to let Whelan go, even though the Biden administration offered several other people instead.

Earlier this year, a top aide to Alexey Navalny said the Russian opposition leader was just days away from being exchanged for Krasikov before he died mysteriously in a Russian penal colony. CNN was unable to independently confirm the plans.

US President Joe Biden welcomed news that wrongfully detained Americans Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan have been exchanged as part of a prisoner swap with Russia, calling it “a feat of diplomacy.”

Biden will speak at the White House at noon ET on the release of the Americans.

“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 wrote.

Biden has repeatedly called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to release Gershkovich, Whelan and other wrongfully detained Americans in Russia.

“My Administration has now brought home over 70 such Americans, many of whom were in captivity since before I took office. Still, too many families are suffering and separated from their loved ones, and I have no higher priority as President than bringing those Americans home.”

CNN reported earlier Thursday that Biden met this morning with families of detained Americans in Russia at the White House — he’s scheduled to deliver remarks at noon.

At least five German citizens have been released in today’s prisoner exchange. To ensure their release, Germany had to release Russian Vadim Krasikov, a convicted murderer who was serving a life sentence.

Here are the German citizens who were freed:

Rico Krieger, 30 or 31:

Kevin Lick, 18:

Demuri (Dieter) Voronin:

Herman Moyzhes:

Patrick Schoebel:

From top left: US journalist Evan Gershkovich, former US marine Paul Whelan, Russian opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza, and Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva.

American journalist Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan were among the 24 detainees released as part of a complex prisoner swap between Russia, the US and other Western nations.

Here’s what we know about the US citizens who were released today:

President Joe Biden’s efforts to finalize Thursday’s prisoner exchange were ongoing even as he was preparing to drop out of the 2024 race. 

About an hour before he publicly released a letter ending his reelection bid, Biden was on the phone with his Slovenian counterpart to urge them to help push the deal over the finish line, according to a senior administration official.

On Thursday, Biden is expected to pay tribute to the Americans whom the US government would still like to see returned home.

A senior administration official said the administration had also sought the release of Marc Fogel – an American citizen who was sentenced to 14 years at a labor camp in Russia after working as a history teacher in Moscow – but was not successful.

“We absolutely wanted Marc to be included, but it just wasn’t going to happen,” the official said, insisting that the administration would only “keep redoubling our efforts” to see Fogel and others released.

The official stressed that the prisoner swap does not signal any kind of “breakthrough” or “détente” in US-Russian relations, as Russian President Vladimir Putin continues with Russia’s offensive in Ukraine. 

The CIA worked for years through a channel with Russian intelligence, playing a critical role in Thursday’s exchange of prisoners with Director Bill Burns and other agency officials directly involved in negotiations, according to a US official.

The latest proposal for the swap was presented to Russian intelligence in a third country in late June. Burns was not in attendance, other CIA officials attended the meeting. In early July, the Russian side indicated in a phone call with Burns that they agreed, in principal, to the proposal. In mid-July, it was formally accepted. 

Russia has referred to this as the “special channel.”

The US official declined to name the third country but the Turkish intelligence service, called MIT, created “dialogue channels” and hosted the final meeting between intelligence officials before today’s swap, according to the Turkish president’s office.

US officials have confirmed the biggest prisoner exchange since the Cold War following complicated — and delicate — behind-the-scenes negotiations between the United States, Russia, Belarus and Germany.

Twenty-four prisoners were released and seven countries were involved in the exchange.

President Joe Biden gathered the families of Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva and Vladimir Kara-Murza at the White House on Thursday to relay the news that their loved ones were heading home, Sullivan said.

The three US citizens and one legal permanent resident returning home from Russia comprise:

The 12 German nationals and Russian political prisoners who will return to Germany, comprise:

The released Russians are:

The families of the American prisoners involved in the exchange are at the White House, according to a source with knowledge of the matter, ahead of an anticipated meeting with President Joe Biden.

The families have gathered in the White House’s Roosevelt Room as President Biden is briefed in the Oval Office.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he believes all “enemies” of Russia should remain abroad and those who are not “enemies” are welcome to return, Russian state news agency TASS reports.

His comments follow the news of a historic prisoner swap between the US and Russia.

When asked specifically about the prisoner exchange, Peskov indicated the Kremlin would respond in “due time,” adding that he hopes the response would come later in the day.

The post was updated with more of Peskov’s remarks.

The reported prisoner swap does not demonstrate the Kremlin’s “goodwill,” even if it shows Moscow’s openness to striking deals with the West, says a leading Russia analyst.

Sam Greene, the director of the Democratic Resilience Program at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) and a professor of Russian politics at King’s College London, said the Kremlin may be attempting to signal its willingness to negotiate with the West, which could bring an end to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Greene said this is “problematic for a couple of reasons.”

“One, none of these people were legitimate prisoners,” he said. “To negotiate in good faith to return a person who should never have been held in the first place, like Evan Gershkovich… to my mind doesn’t earn you a lot of brownie points.”

Whereas it is “relatively easy” for Russia to give up detainees, convincing it to relinquish Ukrainian territory is another matter entirely, he said.

Turkey’s intelligence agency, The National Intelligence Organisation (MIT), established “dialogue channels” for the historic prisoner exchange, according to the Turkish presidency.

The exchange between seven countries in Ankara was managed by the Turkish intelligence agency “from the very beginning of the negotiation process until the last moment when the swaps were carried out.”

US journalist Evan Gershkovich and former US marine Paul Whelan

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan were part of the historic prisoner exchange today, according to the Turkish presidency.

German national Rico Krieger, imprisoned in Belarus, the Russian dissident Ilya Yashin, and FSB colonel Vadim Krasikov, jailed in Germany, were also part of the exchange, the presidency said.

A major prisoner exchange underway between Russia and the West could be the “the start [of a] new page for the whole world,” Russian lawmaker Maria Butina told CNN’s Matthew Chance on Thursday.

Butina herself was a prisoner in the US, and told CNN that returned Russian prisoners from the US “have been through horrible times and they need time to recover.”

“I wouldn’t link it directly to Ukraine, but I wish and I’d like to hope that this is the start [of a] new page for the whole world, though I wouldn’t be so much optimistic that it’s going to mean something in terms of the relationships between Russia and Ukraine,” Butina said.

The Kremlin has declined to comment on reports of a potential prisoner exchange between Russia and the US involving Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan. 

Three Russians serving sentences for federal crimes were transferred to the US Marshals Service in preparation for the eventual trade, law enforcement officials said, the first signs of the US end to the prisoner swap.

Their prison location disappeared from the US Bureau of Prisons website. 

The secrecy surrounding the Russian deal meant that even the attorney for one of the prisoners didn’t know about the pending agreement and complained to a federal judge that they didn’t know the whereabouts of their client. 

Unlike previous swaps, the pending agreement with the prospects of trading Russian criminals for Whelan and other Americans hasn’t generated opposition among Justice Department officials, people briefed on the matter said.

The deal to trade notorious arms trafficker Viktor Bout for WNBA player Brittney Griner prompted strenuous objections inside the Justice Department, CNN previously reported. 

Turkey said Thursday it played a role as a mediator in a prisoner exchange involving people from seven countries, according to the Turkish Presidency Directorate of Communications.

Several people could be seen disembarking from a plane at Turkey’s Ankara airport and walking onto the tarmac on a live video from the scene, streamed by Reuters.

Some walked toward a bus parked on the tarmac, while others remained stood on the tarmac.

The footage was from around 5 p.m. local time (10 a.m. ET.) It was not immediately clear who the people were.

Turkey has confirmed it played a mediator role in a prisoner exchange involving people from seven countries, according to Turkish Presidency Directorate of Communications.

Former US marine Paul Whelan stands inside a defendants' cage during a court hearing in Moscow, Russia, on January 22, 2019.

Paul Whelan, who is expected to be a part of the prisoner swap, was arrested in Moscow in December 2018 and sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2020 on espionage charges he consistently denies. 

Whelan – who is a US, Irish, British and Canadian citizen – was detained at a Moscow hotel by Russian authorities who alleged he was involved in an intelligence operation.

The former US Marine had been carrying out his sentence at a labor camp in Mordovia, an eight-hour drive from Moscow, where he told CNN in June 2021 that he spent his days working in a clothing factory that he called a “sweatshop.” 

It’s been a particularly long wait for Whelan, who has been left out of several exchanges in the past. 

He was not part of two deals in 2022. In April of that year, Moscow exchanged former US Marine Trevor Reed for Russian citizen and convicted drug trafficker Konstantin Yaroshenko. In December, WNBA star Brittney Griner was swapped for the Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. 

A person close to one of the prisoners’ families involved in the expected prisoner swap told CNN the family is elated and full of anticipation after months and years of pain and false starts.

The source said they’re also nervous and won’t be truly comfortable until they see their loved ones safe.

The relatives had been staying at a Washington, DC, hotel, and were waiting to meet with President Joe Biden, the source said.

Reporters Without Borders said it is “hugely relieved” by reports that the Wall Street Journal’s Evan Gershkovich is expected to be a part of a prisoner swap with Russia, but asserted he “should have never spent a single day in a Russian prison.”

In a statement, Rebecca Vincent, director of campaigns decried what she described as the “Russian government’s continued policy of state hostage-taking” as “outrageous.”

Vincent also drew attention to the detention of more than 40 other journalists in Russia.

The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom also celebrated Gershkovich’s expected release, with the watchdog writing in a post that they “celebrate Evan’s freedom and will keep pushing for the release of all detained journalists in Europe.”

“Press freedom is a fundamental right,” it said.

The groups also expressed hope that Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) editor Alsu Kurmasheva would also be part of the exchange.

CNN’s Catherine Nicholls contributed to this report.

This post has been updated with additional reactions.

President Joe Biden is pictured as he delivers a prime-time address to the nation from the Oval Office of the White House, in Washington DC, on July 24.

Jonathan Franks, the spokesperson for the “Bring Our Families Home Campaign,” a coalition of family members of Americans detained abroad, said both Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan’s expected release “is going to be a legacy piece for President Biden, adding the administration has “brought home a historic number of people” during his administration.

Franks was involved in the return of Trevor Reed in 2022, a US citizen and former Marine who had been detained in Russia since 2019, ending a nearly three-year encounter for Reed, who had been sentenced to nine years in prison in July 2020 for endangering the “life and health” of Russian police officers in an altercation.

Reed and his family denied the charges against him.

Franks said he wasn’t all too surprised when Whelan didn’t make it back to the US with Reed, but he was surprised when he didn’t come home with Brittney Griner, who was freed from Russian detention after a prisoner exchange for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout in 2022.

US journalist Evan Gershkovich is seen inside a defendants' cage before a hearing at the Moscow City Court on February 20.

Evan Gershkovich, who is expected to be among those in the prisoner swap, was the first American journalist to be arrested on espionage charges in Russia since the Cold War. 

Gershkovich, 32, was arrested while reporting for the Wall Street Journal during a trip to Yekaterinburg in March 2023, and later accused of spying for the CIA. Russian authorities have never offered any public evidence to support their claims. 

Within two weeks of his arrest, the US State Department designated him as wrongfully detained and called for his immediate release. 

Following his arrest, Gershkovich was held in Moscow’s notorious Lefortovo prison, spending almost every hour of the day in a small cell, before being transferred to the city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals more than 1,100 miles east of the capital.

He passed the time by writing letters to his friends and family and was allowed just one hour of walking per day, his parents said in an interview with the WSJ. 

Gershkovich was found guilty of spying and sentenced to 16 years in prison by a Russian court on July 19, in a case that the US government, the WSJ and his supporters denounced as a sham. 

Gershkovich, the US government, and the WSJ vehemently denied the charges against him. 

CNN’s Sophie Tanno, Anna Chernova and Moscow staff contributed reporting to this post. 

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US marine Paul Whelan.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan are expected to be a part of the swap, according to a senior administration official said.

Thursday’s swap comes after months of quiet and complicated negotiations between Moscow and Washington, which included US diplomats scouring the globe for offers to entice Russia to release the Americans.

Gershkovich was arrested in March 2023 while on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg. He was found guilty of espionage by a Russian court on July 19 and sentenced to 16 years in prison in a trial that the US government, his newspaper and supporters have denounced as a sham.

Whelan – who is a US, Irish, British and Canadian citizen – was detained at a Moscow hotel in December 2018 by Russian authorities who alleged he was involved in an intelligence operation.

This post has been updated with additional background.

American basketball star Brittney Griner disembarks after landing in San Antonio, Texas, on December 9, 2022, after she was released from a Russian prison in exchange.

Thursday’s swap is the third major prisoner exchange between Russia and the US in just over two years.

A view shows the Kremlin in Moscow on May 7.

There is expected to be a large-scale prisoner swap between the US and Russia, including a number of Americans, according to a source familiar.

The parties have agreed to a prisoner transfer and that prisoners are expected to soon be in US custody, according to a senior administration official.

Some of the Americans that have been discussed as part of the negotiations are Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan.