Putin orders release of jailed American as he meets Trump envoy for Ukraine talks | Russia | The Guardian  (putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release.html)   (../../../../../assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/manifest.json)  (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon.svg) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon-512.png) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon-360.png) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon-240.png) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/icons/homescreen/apple-touch-icon-120.png) (../../../../../static.guim.co.uk/images/favicon-32x32.ico) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/) (https://i.guim.co.uk) (https://j.ophan.co.uk) (https://ophan.theguardian.com) (https://sourcepoint.theguardian.com) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/) (https://i.guim.co.uk) (https://j.ophan.co.uk) (https://ophan.theguardian.com) (https://api.nextgen.guardianapps.co.uk) (https://hits-secure.theguardian.com) (https://interactive.guim.co.uk) (https://static.theguardian.com) (https://support.theguardian.com) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/noalts-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) (https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-textegyptian/noalts-not-hinted/GuardianTextEgyptian-Regular.woff2)                                 (../../../../../assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/css/print.css)  (putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release.html#maincontent) Skip to main content (putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release.html#navigation) Skip to navigation (Close [ESC or Q])   Close dialogue  1 / 2   (Next image [→])   Next image  (Previous image [←])   Previous image  (Toggle caption [i])   Toggle caption                         (https://support.theguardian.com/subscribe/weekly?REFPVID=undefined&INTCMP=undefined&acquisitionData=%7B%22source%22%3A%22GUARDIAN_WEB%22%2C%22componentId%22%3A%22PrintSubscriptionsHeaderLink%22%2C%22componentType%22%3A%22ACQUISITIONS_HEADER%22%2C%22referrerUrl%22%3A%22%22%7D) Print subscriptions   (https://www.theguardian.com/email-newsletters) Newsletters   (https://profile.theguardian.com/signin?INTCMP=DOTCOM_NEWHEADER_SIGNIN&ABCMP=ab-sign-in&componentEventParams=componentType%3Didentityauthentication%26componentId%3Dguardian_signin_header)   Sign in        US  (https://www.theguardian.com/preference/edition/us) US edition  (https://www.theguardian.com/preference/edition/uk) UK edition  (https://www.theguardian.com/preference/edition/au) Australia edition  (https://www.theguardian.com/preference/edition/eur) Europe edition  (https://www.theguardian.com/preference/edition/int) International edition      (https://www.theguardian.com/) The Guardian - Back to home             The Guardian    (https://www.theguardian.com/) News  (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree) Opinion  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport) Sport  (https://www.theguardian.com/culture) Culture  (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle) Lifestyle    Show more    Hide expanded menu       News (https://www.theguardian.com/) View all News  (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news) US news  (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/us-politics) US politics  (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/us-midterm-elections-2026) Midterms 2026  (https://www.theguardian.com/world) World news  (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-crisis) Climate crisis  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/middleeast) Middle East  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/ukraine) Ukraine  (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/usimmigration) US immigration  (https://www.theguardian.com/us/soccer) Soccer  (https://www.theguardian.com/us/business) Business  (https://www.theguardian.com/us/environment) Environment  (https://www.theguardian.com/us/technology) Tech  (https://www.theguardian.com/science) Science  (https://www.theguardian.com/email-newsletters) Newsletters  (https://www.theguardian.com/thefilter-us) The Filter  (https://www.theguardian.com/us/wellness) Wellness      Opinion (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree) View all Opinion  (https://www.theguardian.com/profile/editorial) The Guardian view  (https://www.theguardian.com/us/columnists) Columnists  (https://www.theguardian.com/tone/letters) Letters  (https://www.theguardian.com/type/video+tone/comment) Opinion videos  (https://www.theguardian.com/tone/cartoons) Cartoons      Sport (https://www.theguardian.com/sport) View all Sport  (https://www.theguardian.com/us/soccer) Soccer  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/nfl) NFL  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/tennis) Tennis  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/mlb) MLB  (https://www.theguardian.com/football/mls) MLS  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/nba) NBA  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/wnba) WNBA  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/nhl) NHL  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/formulaone) F1  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/golf) Golf      Culture (https://www.theguardian.com/culture) View all Culture  (https://www.theguardian.com/film) Film  (https://www.theguardian.com/books) Books  (https://www.theguardian.com/music) Music  (https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign) Art & design  (https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio) TV & radio  (https://www.theguardian.com/stage) Stage  (https://www.theguardian.com/music/classicalmusicandopera) Classical  (https://www.theguardian.com/games) Games  (https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/series/design-a-better-world) Design a better world      Lifestyle (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle) View all Lifestyle  (https://www.theguardian.com/thefilter-us) The Filter  (https://www.theguardian.com/us/wellness) Wellness  (https://www.theguardian.com/fashion) Fashion  (https://www.theguardian.com/food) Food  (https://www.theguardian.com/tone/recipes) Recipes  (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/love-and-sex) Love & sex  (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/home-and-garden) Home & garden  (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/health-and-wellbeing) Health & fitness  (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/family) Family  (https://www.theguardian.com/travel) Travel  (https://www.theguardian.com/money) Money    Search input  (Search the Guardian)  google-search   Search       (www.theguardian.com)      (https://support.theguardian.com?acquisitionData=%7B%22source%22:%22GUARDIAN_WEB%22,%22componentType%22:%22ACQUISITIONS_HEADER%22,%22componentId%22:%22side_menu_support%22%7D&INTCMP=side_menu_support) Support us  (https://support.theguardian.com/subscribe/weekly?REFPVID=undefined&INTCMP=undefined&acquisitionData=%7B%22source%22%3A%22GUARDIAN_WEB%22%2C%22componentId%22%3A%22PrintSubscriptionsHeaderLink%22%2C%22componentType%22%3A%22ACQUISITIONS_HEADER%22%2C%22referrerUrl%22%3A%22%22%7D) Print subscriptions  (https://www.theguardian.com/email-newsletters) Newsletters  (https://app.adjust.com/1hskf6nd?adgroup=USHeader) Download the app   (https://theguardian.newspapers.com) Digital Archive  (https://licensing.theguardian.com/) Guardian Licensing  (https://www.theguardian.com/guardian-live-events?INTCMP=live_us_header_dropdown) Live events  (https://www.theguardian.com/about) About Us  (https://app.adjust.com/16xt6hai) The Guardian app  (https://www.theguardian.com/video) Video  (https://www.theguardian.com/podcasts) Podcasts  (https://www.theguardian.com/inpictures) Pictures  (https://www.theguardian.com/insidetheguardian) Inside the Guardian  (https://www.theguardian.com/weekly?INTCMP=gdnwb_mawns_editorial_gweekly_GW_TopNav_US) Guardian Weekly  (https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords) Crosswords  (https://www.wordiply.com) Wordiply  (https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/series/corrections-and-clarifications) Corrections  (https://www.theguardian.com/tips) Tips    Search input  (Search the Guardian)  google-search   Search       (www.theguardian.com)   (https://theguardian.newspapers.com) Digital Archive  (https://licensing.theguardian.com/) Guardian Licensing  (https://www.theguardian.com/guardian-live-events?INTCMP=live_us_header_dropdown) Live events  (https://www.theguardian.com/about) About Us         (https://www.theguardian.com/world) World  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/europe-news) Europe   (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news) US news  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/americas) Americas  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/asia) Asia  (https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news) Australia  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/middleeast) Middle East  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/africa) Africa  (https://www.theguardian.com/inequality) Inequality  (https://www.theguardian.com/global-development) Global development                      (Steve Witkoff and Vladimir Putin shake hands.)                   Witkoff calls Putin a ‘humanitarian’ after release of jailed American – video         (https://www.theguardian.com/world/russia) Russia     Putin orders release of jailed American as he meets Trump envoy for Ukraine talks   Russia frees Stephen Hubbard after US request while Steve Witkoff praises Putin, wanted by ICC as war criminal, as a ‘humanitarian’ (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2026/oct/21/donald-trump-south-carolina-data-centers-midterms-ukraine-witkoff-russia-latest-news-updates) US politics live – latest updates            (https://www.theguardian.com/profile/pjotr-sauer) Pjotr Sauer   Wed 21 Oct 2026 17.23 EDT  First published on Wed 21 Oct 2026 07.50 EDT   (mailto:?subject=Putin orders release of jailed American as he meets Trump envoy for Ukraine talks&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/21/putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release?CMP=share_btn_url) Share          (https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=theguardian.com) Prefer the Guardian on Google          Vladimir Putin ordered the release of an American man from a Russian jail as he met Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg on Wednesday for fresh talks on ending the war in Ukraine, amid increasingly close relations between Moscow and Washington. Trump had previously asked Putin to free Stephen Hubbard, a 74-year-old former teacher who had spent more than four years in Russian jails on (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/07/russia-court-convicts-american-stephen-james-hubbard-fighting-ukraine) charges of fighting as a mercenary for Ukraine .  His release appeared to be Moscow’s latest calculated move to bring Trump further into line with Putin’s position on (https://www.theguardian.com/world/ukraine) Ukraine , while offering the US president a diplomatic victory before the midterm elections. Hubbard was released unilaterally by (https://www.theguardian.com/world/russia) Russia , rather than as part of a prisoner exchange as has often been the case with previous releases of Americans held in the country. Writing on social media after the release was announced, Trump said it followed a request he had made “directly” to Putin last week. He wrote on Truth Social: “The United States, out of respect for President Trump, was not required to give anything in return – an unprecedented situation for Russia … There was no ‘swap’ necessary for this release.”       (Stephen Hubbard behind a glass screen in court.)   (putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release.html#img-1)   View image in fullscreen       Stephen Hubbard in court in Moscow in October 2024. Photograph: Moscow city court press service/AP  Witkoff, meanwhile, lavished praise on Putin during their meeting at the grand Constantine Palace in St Petersburg, describing the Russian president as a humanitarian. “You talk so much about my president, President Trump, being a humanitarian. You are a humanitarian also, sir, and I salute that,” Witkoff told Putin. He also conveyed Trump’s thanks for a (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/11/trump-russia-diesel-deal-putin-little-impact-prices) deal to resume Russian diesel exports to the US.  The Russian president is wanted by the international criminal court (ICC) as a war criminal, in relation to the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia during the war. More than 17,500 civilians have been confirmed killed in Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, according to the UN, which says the true toll is likely to be significantly higher. The warmth of Witkoff’s remarks stood in stark contrast to the increasingly hostile rhetoric directed at Volodymyr Zelenskyy by senior US officials, most notably Trump, who has called for the Ukrainian president to resign and portrayed him as the main obstacle to peace. Witkoff travelled to Russia from Oslo, where he had (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/21/ukraine-war-briefing-us-envoy-witkoff-to-meet-putin-after-constructive-talks-with-zelenskyy-in-norway) met Zelenskyy and European leaders a day earlier in an attempt to inject momentum into stalled negotiations, with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine now in its fifth year. Witkoff told Putin during a televised portion of their meeting: “We’ve brought some papers. It’s really some ideas, some sort of peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, and you’ll read that at your leisure.” The visit was Witkoff’s ninth to Russia since Trump tasked him with brokering an end to the war. Witkoff described his meeting with Putin as “constructive” but said “important work” remained and trilateral talks between the US, Russia and Ukraine “at the technical level” would follow. The Kremlin said it had agreed “in principle” to the talks, which would focus on how to guarantee the security of Ukraine and Russia once the war ended.       (Steve Witkoff and Vladimir Putin standing together.)   (putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release.html#img-2)   View image in fullscreen       ‘You are a humanitarian also, sir, and I salute that,’ Witkoff told Putin during their meeting. Photograph: Kristina Solovyova/Pool Sputnik Kremlin/AP  The latest rupture in relations between Washington and Kyiv was triggered by Trump’s surprise decision to lift sanctions on Russian diesel as part of a deal with Putin, followed by his (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/10/ukraine-russia-strikes-war-trump-diesel-deal-zelenskyy) call for Zelenskyy to be replaced after Ukraine refused to halt its strikes on Russian oil refineries. Kyiv has since complained of disruptions to US intelligence-sharing and restrictions on its (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/15/starshield-starlink-ukraine-restriction-explained) access to Starshield , the military-grade version of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite network. (putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release.html#EmailSignup-skip-link-20) skip past newsletter promotion     Free newsletter | Every day    Sign up to Headlines Europe  A digest of the morning's main headlines from the Europe edition emailed direct to you every week day  ()   Enter your email  ()   Sign up      after newsletter promotion   Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that Washington had (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/20/us-has-resumed-sharing-intelligence-with-ukraine-about-russian-strikes-says-zelenskyy) resumed providing advance warnings of Russian missile attacks after his meeting with Witkoff in Oslo. But Ukraine continues to face restrictions on Starshield, although it remains unclear who ordered them. The (https://www.wsj.com/world/ukraine-starlink-elon-musk-trump-dbc49193) Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that Musk had personally ordered the slowdown, while Reuters, citing sources, said the directive had come from inside the White House. The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, said on Wednesday that the decision to restrict Ukraine’s access came from Musk. “I’m not aware that we knew ​about this decision beforehand. But that’s irrelevant,” Rubio told reporters ‌during a trip to India. “The bottom ‌line is that, that is governed by a private commercial contract as to how their stuff can be used and what speeds ‌they’ll allow it to be used at.” (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/17/ukraine-kherson-richelievsky-displaced-drones-last-hotel-frontline)  ‘Drones all night. By morning, you smell the smoke’: life in the last hotel on Ukraine’s frontline     Read more        During Wednesday’s meeting with Witkoff, Putin thanked Trump and his wife, Melania, for “their attention to efforts to end the war”. Yet there are few signs of an imminent breakthrough. Despite repeated Ukrainian calls for a ceasefire, including a halt to attacks on energy infrastructure, Moscow has given little indication that it intends to end its bombardment of Ukraine as winter approaches, apparently confident that continued pressure will help it extract greater concessions from Kyiv. The Russian leader remains intent on sticking to his maximalist war aims, including his demand for full Russian control of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. Putin also sought to emphasise the prospects for closer economic ties between Russia and the US once the war ends, suggesting that Moscow could significantly increase its exports of fertilisers to the American market. Russian officials said the first tanker carrying diesel to the US would depart on Thursday as part of an initial shipment of about 300,000 tonnes. Energy analysts and traders have (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/11/trump-russia-diesel-deal-putin-little-impact-prices) questioned whether Trump’s agreement to temporarily resume Russian diesel imports will deliver meaningful relief to US consumers before the midterm elections, arguing that the volumes involved are too small to significantly ease the global supply squeeze. The talks on Wednesday also touched on a possible meeting in China next month between Putin, Trump and the Chinese president, Xi Jinping. The Kremlin said Beijing was already making preparations for what it described as an unprecedented summit between the three leaders.         Explore more on these topics (https://www.theguardian.com/world/russia) Russia  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/ukraine) Ukraine  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/vladimir-putin) Vladimir Putin  (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/us-foreign-policy) US foreign policy  (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/trump-administration) Trump administration  (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/donaldtrump) Donald Trump  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/europe-news) Europe  (https://www.theguardian.com/tone/news) news    (mailto:?subject=Putin orders release of jailed American as he meets Trump envoy for Ukraine talks&body=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/21/putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release?CMP=share_btn_url) Share     (https://syndication.theguardian.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fworld%2F2026%2Foct%2F21%2Fputin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release&type=article&internalpagecode=world/2026/oct/21/putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release) (Reuse this content) Reuse this content                  More on this story                      More on this story                     (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/21/you-are-a-humanitarian-also-sir-us-putin-lies-ukraine-children-take-cover-and-die-witkoff)    ()      ‘You are a humanitarian also, sir’: the US feeds Putin with lies as Ukraine’s children take cover and die   (Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 01:57 PM Eastern Daylight Time) 4h ago           (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/19/no-us-warning-russian-strikes-kyiv-power-plants-zelenskyy-ukraine-trump)    ()      US gave us no warning of Russian strikes on Kyiv power plants, Zelenskyy says   (Tuesday, October 20, 2026 at 02:47 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 2d ago           (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/18/killed-injured-russia-ukraine-strikes-power-infrastructure)    ()      Zelenskyy thanks Trump for resumed intelligence sharing after US Starlink ‘message’   (Sunday, October 18, 2026 at 12:37 PM Eastern Daylight Time) 3d ago           (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/17/volodymyr-zelenskyy-donald-trump-lift-sanctions-russia-intensify-war-ukraine)    ()      Trump’s pause on Russia sanctions is ‘reward’ for Putin, Zelenskyy says   (Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 11:38 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 4d ago           (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/16/attacks-on-ukraine-power-plants-show-russia-has-given-up-on-military-victory)    ()      Power plant attacks reflect Russian blueprint to make Ukrainian cities unlivable   (Friday, October 16, 2026 at 11:28 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 5d ago           (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/16/trump-calls-ukraines-resumption-of-strikes-on-russian-oil-refineries-a-disgrace)    ()      Trump calls Ukraine’s renewed strikes on Russian oil refineries ‘a disgrace’   (Friday, October 16, 2026 at 06:01 AM Eastern Daylight Time) 6d ago           (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/15/us-effort-to-get-russia-ukraine-energy-ceasefire-collapses)    ()      Russia and Ukraine trade strikes as Trump ‘energy ceasefire’ collapses   (Thursday, October 15, 2026 at 07:57 PM Eastern Daylight Time) 6d ago           (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/14/volodymyr-zelenskyy-feels-betrayed-by-donald-trump-over-starlink-access)    ()      Volodymyr Zelenskyy feels ‘betrayed’ by Donald Trump over Starlink access   (Wednesday, October 14, 2026 at 07:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time) 7d ago                        Most viewed      Most viewed                                                               (https://www.theguardian.com/world) World  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/europe-news) Europe   (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news) US news  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/americas) Americas  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/asia) Asia  (https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news) Australia  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/middleeast) Middle East  (https://www.theguardian.com/world/africa) Africa  (https://www.theguardian.com/inequality) Inequality  (https://www.theguardian.com/global-development) Global development       (https://www.theguardian.com/) News  (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree) Opinion  (https://www.theguardian.com/sport) Sport  (https://www.theguardian.com/culture) Culture  (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle) Lifestyle    Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning (https://www.theguardian.com/info/2018/sep/17/guardian-us-morning-briefing-sign-up-to-stay-informed) Sign up for our email     (https://www.theguardian.com/info/about-guardian-us) About us  (https://manage.theguardian.com/help-centre) Help  (https://www.theguardian.com/info/complaints-and-corrections) Complaints & corrections  (https://www.theguardian.com/info/about-guardian-us/contact) Contact us  (https://www.theguardian.com/tips) Tip us off  (https://www.theguardian.com/securedrop) SecureDrop  (https://www.theguardian.com/info/privacy) Privacy policy  (https://www.theguardian.com/info/cookies) Cookie policy  (https://uploads.guim.co.uk/2026/07/22/STL_Global_Tax_Strategy_for_the_year_to_31_March_2027.pdf) Tax strategy  (https://www.theguardian.com/help/terms-of-service) Terms & conditions   (https://www.theguardian.com/index/subjects/a) All topics  (https://www.theguardian.com/index/contributors) All writers  (https://www.theguardian.com/email-newsletters?INTCMP=DOTCOM_FOOTER_NEWSLETTER_US) Newsletters  (https://theguardian.newspapers.com) Digital newspaper archive  (https://bsky.app/profile/us.theguardian.com) Bluesky  (https://www.facebook.com/theguardian) Facebook  (https://www.instagram.com/guardian) Instagram  (https://www.linkedin.com/company/theguardian) LinkedIn  (https://www.threads.com/@guardian_us) Threads  (https://www.tiktok.com/@guardian) TikTok  (https://www.youtube.com/user/TheGuardian) YouTube   (https://usadvertising.theguardian.com) Advertise with us  (https://www.theguardian.com/guardian-labs-us) Guardian Labs  (https://workwithus.theguardian.com/) Work with us  (https://www.theguardian.com/help/accessibility-help) Accessibility settings         (putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release.html#top) Back to top      © 2026Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved.(dcr)