President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris welcomed home three American citizens who were freed by Russia in a prisoner swap, greeting them on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Thursday night. The three Americans, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, American veteran Paul Whelan, and Alsu Kurmasheva, were met with cheers and tears from their family members and a small group of Wall Street Journal employees.
The prisoner exchange, which was facilitated by the US and Russia, involved the release of 16 prisoners from Western countries in exchange for the release of eight Russians. The swap took place on a tarmac in Ankara, Turkey, before the Americans boarded a flight to the US.
As the Americans stepped off the plane, Biden and Harris were on hand to greet them, with Harris praising the prisoner exchange as a testament to the power of diplomacy. “This is an extraordinary testament to the importance of having a president who understands the power of diplomacy,” she said.
However, not everyone was pleased with the deal, with some critics arguing that the US should not have had to negotiate with Russia to secure the release of its citizens. Biden, however, seemed satisfied with the outcome, telling reporters that he was “satisfied” that the prisoners had made it home safely.
When asked what he would like to say to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Biden was brief, saying only “Stop. There’s nothing beyond our capacity when we act together…Nothing…We’re the United States of America.”
