Russia frees 74-year-old US citizen Stephen Hubbard as Putin-Witkoff meeting continues

Russia in a recent latest diplomatic development has freed 74-year-old US citizen Stephan Hubbard who was imprisoned in Russia for more than four years on charges of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine.

The decision to release Hubbard comes as the Trump administration’s special envoy Steve Witkoff has arrived in St. Petersburg and his meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin still continues over Ukraine settlement.

The US State Department officially designated Stephen Hubbard, a retired teacher from Michigan, as wrongfully detained in Russia.

President Donald Trump shared that he raised Hubbard's case directly with Putin. Soon after the release of the American citizen, Steve Witkoff thanked Putin following their meeting.

During the meeting, Putin noted that Hubbard was at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport, the same airport where Witkoff had landed earlier on Wednesday.

Prior to Witkoff’s trip to Russia, the US officials declared that agenda of talks would also include efforts to “seek the release of wrongfully detained Hubbard.”

Hubbard was arrested in April 2022 in the eastern Ukrainian city of Izyum where he allegedly had been manning a Ukrainian military checkpoint and as per the Russian state media he was found guilty of charges.

But his US-based lawyer, Martin De Luca, previously told Reuters Hubbard had told him the charges against him were false and that he was not in any combat or military unit.