Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday, the 12th of February, that a Russian citizen had been released from a US prison in exchange for Moscow releasing imprisoned American teacher Marc Fogel, a deal which he said could help build confidence in Washington, but disagreed with US President Donald Trump’s assertion that it could significantly contribute to ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, reports Reuters.
Peskov said the freed Russian would return home in the coming days and would not be named until he returned to Russian territory.
Fogel, 63, was serving a 14-year prison sentence for drug smuggling after he was caught with a small amount of marijuana at a Moscow airport. He was flown to Washington on Tuesday, where he celebrated his release with Trump at the White House.
This was the first agreement that Russia has made with the new Trump administration since he returned to the White House on the 20th of January. Trump said it “could be a big and important part” of ending the three-year war in Ukraine.
ASKED ABOUT THE COMMENT, PESKOV SAID THE AGREEMENT ON THE RELEASE OF THE PRISONERS WAS THE RESULT OF “VERY, VERY METICULOUS NEGOTIATIONS”.
“Of course, such agreements can hardly become decisive, but at the same time, step by step, they are measures to build mutual trust, which is at its lowest point at the moment,” he added.
Peskov also said that Russia would never discuss the possibility of swapping Ukrainian territory it owns for Kiyv-controlled territories in the Kursk region, responding to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s suggestion that if Trump brought Putin to the negotiating table there could be a swap of territories to help end the war.
US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz said Fogel’s release through negotiations “serves as a sign of goodwill on the Russian side and a sign that we are on the right path to ending the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine”.
Trump said that another person would be released on Wednesday, without specifying who it would be. He called the conditions of Fogel’s release “very fair”.
“Russia treated us very kindly. In fact, I hope this is the beginning of a relationship in which we can end this (Ukraine) war and millions of people will no longer be killed,” Trump said.
Peskov refused to comment on the possibility of further prisoner releases.
Fogel was released under the supervision of Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who arrived unannounced in Moscow on Tuesday to bring him back.
The Washington Post reported that Witkoff, a real estate developer and long-time friend of Trump, had a three-and-a-half-hour meeting with Putin, according to Fox News anchor Sean Hannity.
Peskov said he had “nothing to say” about it.
Asked what the US gave up in exchange for Fogel, Trump earlier told reporters that it was “not much” and called the release an expression of goodwill on the part of the Russians.
The Russian rouble rose against the dollar on Wednesday on news of the Fogel deal and optimism about the prospects for easing the Ukraine crisis.