US President Donald Trump said that Russia released American school student Mark Phogel on Tuesday after a Moscow visit by American Special Envoy Steve Witcooff on Tuesday.
63 -year -old Phogel’s release, which was detailed in Russia since August 2021 and was serving a 14 -year sentence, as Trump wanted to improve relations with Moscow. Was in Ukraine,
Trump told reporters that Phogel would visit the White House when returning late on Tuesday, and the White House National Security Advisor Mike Waltz said that on Tuesday night joined his family again, who saw the news.
At an aircraft house, Phogo, who is from Pennsylvania, shown with a raised glass, a cheese plate and its American passport, which is in a picture posted on social media by Trump’s chief hostage messenger Adam Bohaler .
Asked what the United States gave in exchange for Phogel, Trump said: “not much” and called the release a demonstration of good faith from the Russians.
Trump said, “We were treated very well by Russia. In fact, I hope that this is the beginning of a relationship where we can end that (Ukraine) war and millions of people can be killed. “
In August 2021, Phogel was sentenced to 14 years in jail for drug trafficking with 17 grams of marijuana in her luggage with 17 grams of marijuana at Sheremetevo Airport in Moscow. Fogel’s legal team member Martin de Luka said, Marijuana was medicalily determined in Pennsylvania, where it is legal.
Witchoff’s Tarpulin Phogel was on the ground in Moscow for a few hours before leaving with the onboard, flying from Central Europe and returned to Washington, D Luka told Reuters.
The Phogel family said in a statement, “We are grateful, beyond relief, and are overwell that after more than three years, our father, husband and son, Mark Phogel, are finally coming home.”
“This has been the deepest and most painful period of our life, but today, we begin to fix.”
Phogel’s Russian lawyer Dimitri Ovsnikov confirmed the release of state news agency RIA.
“At the moment, we do not know on what basis he was released from where he was serving time – an forgiveness or something.”
He told Russia’s Interfax news agency that Phogel was transferred from a prison in Ribinsk north of Moscow last week, which was in a pre-testing deduction center in Moscow before its release.
Phogel was released out of a historic swap of prisoners in August consisting of 24 prisoners – 16 sent to west from Russia, including Wall Street Journal reporter Ivan Gorsakovic, and eight were sent back to Russia from West to Russia. Was.
Trump has indicated that he has spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but is unclear on details other than ending the three -year -old Ukraine.
“We are making good progress there. I think, I think we are really making some good progress,” Trump told reporters about Ukraine on Tuesday.
