Stephen Hubbard, the 74-year-old retired Michigan teacher released from a Russian prison on 21 October, said on Friday he only believed he would be freed when he was given new clothes and led to the exit, speaking in his first public remarks since his release during a White House visit with President Donald Trump.
Hubbard spent more than four years behind bars on charges that he fought as a mercenary in Ukraine, which Russia invaded in February 2022. His legal team has denied the accusations and said he was not involved in any military activity.
Hubbard said he had heard many times previously that he would be released but never really trusted what he was told, adopting a philosophy of “seeing is believing” and “actions speak louder than words”. “Only when they started giving me new clothes and leading me to the exit of the prison,” he said. “I went out and I saw the car, and I was accompanied by a couple of Russians, then I believed, finally believed, on the drive from Moscow to St Petersburg, ‘I'm really going somewhere.’”
Trump has said he asked Russian leader Vladimir Putin to free Hubbard and that the US did not have to release anyone in return. "He was somebody I wanted to get back," the US president said as he hosted Hubbard in the Oval Office on Friday. The White House allowed a limited pool of journalists, primarily news photographers and a television crew, into the meeting.
Many in the international community perceived Hubbard's release as Russia's latest manoeuvre to bring Trump closer to Putin's position on the war in Ukraine. It also offered Trump a diplomatic victory ahead of the 3 November midterm elections, when his Republican party is expected to lose seats in Congress.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The Oval Office meeting hands Trump a visible diplomatic win days before the 3 November midterm elections, when his party is expected to lose seats in Congress.
- International observers read the release as Russia positioning Trump closer to Putin's stance on the war in Ukraine.
- Hubbard's case shows how detained US citizens become a focus of personal diplomacy between the US and Russian presidents.
Background
Hubbard was imprisoned for more than four years on Russian charges that he fought as a mercenary in Ukraine, allegations his legal team denies. His release, with Trump saying the US gave nothing in return, fits a broader pattern of US citizens held in Russia becoming bargaining chips in a relationship defined by the war since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Key Perspectives
- Stephen Hubbard: says he only believed he would be freed when guards gave him new clothes and led him to the exit, and his legal team denies the mercenary charges.
- Donald Trump: says he asked Putin to free Hubbard without a US concession, calling him "somebody I wanted to get back".
- International community: perceives the release as Russia's latest manoeuvre to draw Trump toward Putin's position on Ukraine and as a diplomatic victory for Trump before the midterms.
What to Watch
- Whether the release shifts the political narrative before the 3 November midterm elections.
- Any further prisoner releases or exchanges between the US and Russia.
- Moscow's public framing of the release in the coming days.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedHubbard believed he would be freed only when he was given new clothes and led to the exit.World news | The Guardian: “he only believed he would be freed when he got new clothes”
- SupportedHubbard made his first public remarks since his release during a White House visit with Trump.World news | The Guardian: “Hubbard said in his first public remarks since his 21 October release, which came during a visit at the White House with Donald Trump”
- SupportedHubbard is a 74-year-old retired Michigan teacher.World news | The Guardian: “a retired Michigan teacher”
- SupportedHubbard was released on 21 October.World news | The Guardian: “his 21 October release”
- SupportedHubbard said he adopted the philosophy of “seeing is believing” and “actions speak louder than words”.World news | The Guardian: “adopting a philosophy of “seeing is believing” and “actions speak louder than words””
- SupportedHubbard said, “Only when they started giving me new clothes and leading me to the exit of the prison”.World news | The Guardian: ““Only when they started giving me new clothes and leading me to the exit of the prison,” Hubbard said”
- SupportedHubbard said he saw a car, was accompanied by Russians and then believed he was going somewhere on the drive from Moscow to St Petersburg.World news | The Guardian: ““I went out and I saw the car, and I was accompanied by a couple of Russians, then I believed, finally believed, on the drive from Moscow to St Petersburg, ‘I’m really going somewhere.’””
- SupportedHubbard had been behind bars for more than four years on charges that he fought as a mercenary in Ukraine.World news | The Guardian: “Hubbard had been behind bars for more than four years on charges that he fought as a mercenary in Ukraine”
- SupportedHubbard’s legal team denied the accusations and said he was not involved in military activity.World news | The Guardian: “His legal team has denied the Russian accusations and said he was not involved in any military activity.”
- SupportedTrump said he had asked Putin to free Hubbard and that the US did not have to release anyone in return.World news | The Guardian: “Trump has previously said that he had asked Russian leader Vladimir Putin to free Hubbard – and that the US did not have to release anyone in return.”
- SupportedTrump said, “He was somebody I wanted to get back,” while hosting Hubbard in the Oval Office on Friday.World news | The Guardian: ““He was somebody I wanted to get back,” the US president said as he hosted Hubbard on Friday in the Oval Office.”
- SupportedThe release was perceived as a Russian manoeuvre to bring Trump closer to Putin’s position on Ukraine and as a diplomatic victory for Trump ahead of the midterms, when Republicans were expected to lose seats.World news | The Guardian: “Many in the international community perceived Hubbard’s release to be Russia’s latest maneuver to bring Trump closer to Putin’s position on the war in Ukraine. It also offered Trump a diplomatic victory ahead of the 3 November midterm elections, when his Republican party is expected to lose seats in Congress.”