President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris hugged journalist Evan Gershkovich on Thursday (Aug 1) as he and two different Individuals arrived again on US soil after being freed by Russia in an enormous prisoner swap.
Wall Avenue Journal reporter Gershkovich, former US marine Paul Whelan, and journalist Alsu Kurmasheva have been met by cheers from household and pals as they disembarked a airplane, earlier than every embracing Biden and Harris.
“It feels fantastic, it was a very long time coming,” Biden advised reporters at Joint Base Andrews close to Washington, the place he and Harris welcomed the freed prisoners at round 11.40pm.
They have been amongst two dozen detainees launched earlier Thursday within the greatest East-West prisoner swap because the Chilly Battle.
A fourth freed prisoner, Vladimir Kara-Murza, a Russian Kremlin critic with US residency, was additionally amongst these freed however was returning individually to america.
In whole 10 Russians, together with two minors, have been traded for 16 Westerners and Russians imprisoned in Russia in a dramatic alternate on the airport tarmac in Turkey’s capital Ankara.
“Alliances make a distinction. They stepped up and took an opportunity for us,” Biden mentioned of the deal, which additionally concerned Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Belarus on the opposite aspect.
Harris, who’s the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee after Biden dropped out of the 2024 election, heralded “a unprecedented day.”
The freed prisoners and their kinfolk are actually anticipated to journey to San Antonio, Texas, for medical evaluations and any care they want on the Brooke Military Medical Heart, US media mentioned.
