President Vladimir Putin has confirmed the release of an American citizen who was jailed on allegations of fighting on behalf of Ukraine, according to state media reports.
Putin announced that Stephen Hubbard has been taken to Pulkovo Airport following high-level talks with US envoy Steve Witkoff in St. Petersburg.
Hubbard, originally from Michigan, was 72 years old when he was sentenced to nearly seven years in a penal colony in 2024.
Prosecutors had accused him of serving in a defense unit in the eastern city of Izyum when he was captured by Russian forces two years earlier.
The US State Department had previously classified Hubbard as “wrongfully detained.” On Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced that he had raised Hubbard’s case directly with Putin.
“Watch what happens,” Trump told reporters. “We have been focused on Hubbard.”
The BBC has contacted the White House for comment on the release.
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