American Stephen Hubbard, 74, Freed From Russian Prison After More Than Four Years

Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old former teacher from Michigan, was freed from a Russian prison after more than four years and is returning to the United States, President Donald Trump said in a social media post on Wednesday. Trump wrote that Hubbard would soon be with his family and that the U.S. did not have to give anything in return. The release came during a visit to Russia by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, who is in the country for talks with President Vladimir Putin on the Ukraine war. Witkoff briefly met Hubbard in St. Petersburg. Hubbard's family says he had lived in Ukraine since before Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. Russian prosecutors said he signed a contract with the Ukrainian military and fought alongside its forces; after a closed-door trial he was sentenced to seven years in 2024. The State Department called the charges fabricated.

Left-leaning outlets, CBS News and The New York Times, lead with his return and profile, citing Trump and the State Department's description of the charges as fabricated. Alternative coverage from Al Jazeera adds Russia's allegations, Witkoff's praise of Putin as a "humanitarian," and the strained U.S.-Ukraine relationship. Right-leaning Newsmax focuses on his son's fear that he had lost the will to live, citing CBS News. The sources agree on the release and its length.