Trump Envoy Wins Release of American Teacher Held in Russia

An American teacher imprisoned in Russia is on his way back to the United States Tuesday after his release was secured by President Donald Trump and following negotiations involving Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff.

The prisoner, Marc Fogel, was arrested on charges of bringing medical marijuana into Russia in August 2021 and began serving a 14-year prison sentence in June 2022, reports The New York Times.

Tuesday, after more than two years in a Russian prison, Fogel was released and flown out of Russia on Witkoff's private jet.

"President Trump, Steve Witkoff, and the President's advisers negotiated an exchange that serves as a show of good faith from the Russians and a sign we are moving in the right direction to end the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine," National Security Adviser Mike Waltz said in a statement.

He added that since Trump was sworn in, "he has successfully secured the release of Americans detained around the world[, and he] will continue until all Americans being held are returned to the United States."

And by Tuesday night, Waltz said, Fogel will "be on American soil and reunited with his family and loved ones thanks to President Trump's leadership."

Waltz did not provide details about whether a prisoner had been released from the United States or an ally in exchange for Fogel or what steps were taken to secure the release.

It was also not made clear who Witkoff spoke with or if Ukraine was part of the discussions, and the White House has not commented on those questions, reports the Times.

The Biden administration did not classify Fogel as being wrongfully detained until December, just weeks before former President Joe Biden left office.

Witkoff had been negotiating the deal in secret, but his presence in Moscow became known when online flight trackers detected his private jet flying into Russia.

It marked the first known top government official to enter Moscow since former CIA Director William Burns flew there in November 2021 to try to head off Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The deal for Fogel is being seen as a goodwill move between Russia and the United States and is being viewed as underscoring Russian President Vladimir Putin's efforts to rebuild ties with the Trump administration.

Putin has often praised Trump, who has voiced some doubts about Ukrainian leadership.

Fogel's wife, Jane, and sons Ethan and Sam, thanked Trump in a statement for securing their relative's release, saying they are "beyond grateful, relieved, and overwhelmed" that he is "finally coming home."

Witkoff's role in the release is also being seen as an extension beyond his role in the Middle East, according to sources said to be briefed on the situation.

Trump has assigned retired three-star Gen. Keith Kellogg as his envoy for Ukraine and Russia but weeks ago, reportedly empowered Witkoff, in secret, to expand his job beyond the Middle East and play a role in the Russia-Ukraine peace process.

The sources further said that Witkoff had spoken with close allies of Putin before he flew to Moscow and has also discussed Ukraine with his contacts in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Neither side would confirm if Trump and Putin have directly spoken.

Meanwhile, Fogel's allies have been pushing for his release as a gesture to the Trump administration.

His 95-year-old mother, Malphine, lives in Butler, Pa., and was at the rally where Trump was shot last summer. She had met with the then-candidate before the rally and was to have joined him on stage, but the plan was canceled when a shooter opened fire.

Fogel's allies also hoped he would be included in the larger prisoner swap freeing former Marine Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, but the Biden administration didn't push for his release because he had not yet been classified as being wrongly detained.

Fogel's legal team called the Biden decisions "years of bureaucratic inaction."

"President Trump secured Marc's release in just a few weeks, wasting no time in taking decisive action to bring Marc home," attorneys Martin de Luca and Andrew Smith commented.