February 12, 2025
Thank you all, and I love our country, and I’m so happy to be back here. And I wish I could articulate it better.
Marc Fogel commenting from the White House on Tuesday night. After more than three years in prison in Russia, the schoolteacher returned to America yesterday.
Why It Matters: An American who was detained in a Russia prison returned home this week. The White House released a statement on Tuesday that said President Donald Trump and his advisers “negotiated an exchange that serves as a show of good faith from the Russians and a sign we are moving in the right direction to end the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine.” (White House) Pres. Trump said another American is expected to be released.
What Happened:
- Fogel, 63, was arrested in Russia for medical marijuana possession in August 2021. He was there on a teaching assignment.
- He was sentenced to 14 years in prison in Russia but was designated as wrongfully detained by the U.S. State Department.
- The exchange for Fogel successfully took place on Tuesday.
- Fogel returned to America and met with Pres. Trump and the press at the White House on Tuesday evening.
- No further details were released about the exchange with Russia.
Read More: American school teacher Marc Fogel released from Russia prison and headed to meet Trump (USA Today)
by Kelly Dean, Based in Kentucky.
