Russia Releases 74-Year-Old American Stephen Hubbard as Witkoff Meets Putin in St. Petersburg
Updated
Updated · abcnews.com · Oct 21
Russia Releases 74-Year-Old American Stephen Hubbard as Witkoff Meets Putin in St. Petersburg
3 articles · Updated · abcnews.com · Oct 21
Summary
Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old Michigan retiree held by Russia since 2022, was released Wednesday as U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg.
The talks are part of a broader effort that U.S. officials said could free multiple Americans detained in Russia, with Hubbard's case a central focus after Trump said he had pressed Putin to release him.
Hubbard was arrested by Russian forces in eastern Ukraine in April 2022, later sentenced to nearly seven years on mercenary charges that his family and the State Department said were false.
Witkoff arrived after meeting Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Oslo on ceasefire proposals, underscoring how the prisoner release intersects with Trump's wider push for a Ukraine peace deal.
That diplomacy comes as the White House increases pressure on Kyiv to make concessions, while Trump argues U.S. support for Ukraine has cost hundreds of billions of dollars with little return.