The secretary of state Marco Rubio declared on Thursday that an American citizen had been issued by the Russian case in a rare exchange of prisoners, in the midst of a wider effort in Washington and Moscow to repair relationships.
The prisoner, Ksenia Karelina, a double citizen of Russia and the United States, was serving a 12 -year sentence in Russia after being sentenced for treason for having donated about $ 50 to a non -profit group that sends assistance to Ukraine.
Rubio said on Thursday that Mrs. Karelina, 33, was “on a plane at home in the United States”.
“He was unjustly detained by Russia for over a year and President Trump ensured his release,” he wrote on X.
The news of the release of Mrs. Karelina was reported for the first time by the Wall Street Journal, according to which the move was part of an exchange of prisoners that took place in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates.
It arrived when US and Russian diplomats met in Türkiye to discuss the filming of direct flights and restore staff levels to the embassies in both countries.
In February, Russia agreed to release Marc Fogel, an American teacher who has been imprisoned in Russia on charges of drugs. The release of Mr. Fogel – that the Biden administration had classified as unjustly detained – was part of an agreement with the Kremlin negotiated by the special envoy of Mr. Trump in the Middle East, Steve Witkoff. In return, the United States released Alexander Vinnik, a Russian who had been convicted of conspiracy to commit money back money.