{"id":2689013,"date":"2026-10-21T12:25:58","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T16:25:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/releases-american-whod-been-detained-for-years-after-trump-gets-personally-involved\/"},"modified":"2026-10-21T12:25:58","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T16:25:58","slug":"releases-american-whod-been-detained-for-years-after-trump-gets-personally-involved","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/releases-american-whod-been-detained-for-years-after-trump-gets-personally-involved\/","title":{"rendered":"Releases American Who&#8217;d Been Detained for Years After Trump Gets Personally Involved"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Freleases-american-whod-been-detained-for-years-after-trump-gets-personally-involved%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2689013&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Thanks to President Donald Trump\u2019s recent involvement, a 74-year-old retired teacher from Michigan who\u2019s been incarcerated in Russia since 2022 has finally been released and is on his way home to America.<\/p>\n<p>The release of Stephen James Hubbard from Russian custody came after Trump \u201cmade a direct appeal\u201d to Russian President Vladimir Putin, as reported by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/10\/21\/us\/politics\/russia-american-prisoner-release-stephen-hubbard-trump.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>According to a  post published by the president, who just months earlier had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/rare-kremlin-concession-former-marine-freed-years-captivity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">arranged the release<\/a> of another American from Russian custody,\u00a0the United States gave up nothing in return for Hubbard.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe United States, out of respect for President Trump, was not required to give anything in return \u2014 an unprecedented situation for Russia,\u201d he wrote. \u201cThere was no \u2018swap\u2019 necessary for this release.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">President Donald J. Trump announces the release of Stephen Hubbard, taken four years ago by Russia during the Biden Administration.<\/p>\n<p>Stephen is on his way back home and will soon be with his family. \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 https:\/\/t.co\/EsMPLkeYbO<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/WhiteHouse\/status\/2112875664743563709?\">October 21, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The president continued by arguing that Hubbard\u2019s release should have been orchestrated long ago by his predecessor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis major return should have taken place long ago through the Biden Administration, which got nowhere in its negotiations with the Kremlin,\u201d Trump wrote. \u201cStephen is on his way back home.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The actual transfer was coordinated by the president\u2019s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, who traveled to Russia on Wednesday to meet with Putin and oversee Hubbard\u2019s release from Russian custody.<\/p>\n<p>Witkoff expressed gratitude to Putin during the exchange, according to a readout of the meeting reviewed by <a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.com\/International\/witkoff-arrives-st-petersburg-putin-talks-kremlin-aide\/story?id=137438106\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ABC News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI want to thank you very much,\u201d he told the Russian leader, going so far as to describe Putin as \u201ca humanitarian.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe president sends his thanks. Because of you, he\u2019s going home to his family.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Stephen Hubbard, a U.S. citizen who was jailed in Russia for more than four years after being accused of fighting for Ukraine, has been released from custody.<\/p>\n<p>During a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, Witkoff thanked him for freeing the American\u2026<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 CBS News (@CBSNews) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/CBSNews\/status\/2112874670739398767?\">October 21, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Hubbard was teaching English in the Ukrainian town of Izyum when Russia captured the city in April of 2022, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/who-is-stephen-hubbard-us-citizen-released-by-russia-2026-10-21\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Reuters<\/a>. Though Ukrainian forces later retook the city, Hubbard had already been captured.<\/p>\n<p>After a closed trial, a Russian court convicted Hubbard of being a mercenary and sentenced him to nearly seven years in Russian prison.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cProsecutors said Hubbard had joined a Ukrainian territorial defence unit, received training, weapons and ammunition, and was promised $1,000 a month,\u201d according to Reuters. \u201cRussian state media said he had pleaded guilty to the charges he faced.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His sister, Patricia Hubbard Fox, has long cast doubt on Russia\u2019s accusations by noting that her brother held <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/eerie-symbols-pop-ukrainian-buildings-mean\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pro-Russian<\/a> views.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Hubbard\u2019s lawyer, Martin De Luca, told Reuters in June 2025 that Hubbard had told him the charges were totally bogus, and that Russian forces had simply grabbed him from his home.<\/p>\n<p>Hubbard\u2019s release comes amid the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia. In an additional  post, President Trump defended his recent decision to lift sanctions against Russia by arguing that his imposing additional sanctions would have prevented Hubbard\u2019s release.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Numerous people, who requested that sanctions be immediately imposed on Russia, have called to apologize to President Trump in that they didn\u2019t know that he was negotiating the release of Stephen Hubbard, a truly big and important deal for the U.S. If sanctions would have been placed, certainly those negotiations would have come to a complete and total halt.<\/p>\n<p>( TS: Oct 21 2026, 6:49 AM ET )\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200d\u200c\u200b\u200b\u200c\u200b\u200c\u200d\u200b\u200d\u200c\u200b\u200d\u200c\u200d\u200d\u200b\u200d\u200b\u200d\u200d\u200b\u200d\u200b\u200d\u200b\u200c\u200d\u200b\u200b\u200c\u200d\u200c\u200d\u200d\u200d<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Commentary Donald J. Trump  Posts On X (@TrumpTruthOnX) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TrumpTruthOnX\/status\/2112859104536642044?\">October 21, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The New York Times said in their report concerning his release that Trump has \u201crepeatedly sided with Russia and sidelined Ukraine\u201d in recent days.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #171717; display: flex;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;line-height: 1.5;margin: 24px 0;padding: 18px 20px 18px 30px;text-align: left;\">\n<div style=\"align-self: stretch;border-left: 3px solid #171717;flex-shrink: 0;padding-left: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/\">Choose The Western Journal as your preferred source on Google and never miss reporting that defends truth, protects freedom, and advances Western civilization<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey == typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts = { \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs = [ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i = 0; i < inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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The release of Stephen James Hubbard from Russian custody came after Trump \u201cmade a direct appeal\u201d to Russian President Vladimir Putin, as reported<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2689014,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-10-21T103050.818.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2689013","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-10-21T103050.818.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2689013","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2689013"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2689013\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2689014"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2689013"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2689013"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2689013"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}