US President: I appreciate Russia's humanitarian release of a former Marine
US President Donald Trump expressed appreciation on Tuesday for Russia’s agreement to release a former US Marine for humanitarian reasons and without demanding his inclusion in a prisoner swap deal.
Trump announced on his Truth Social platform: “I am pleased to announce that American citizen Robert Gillman, a former US Marine, is returning home.”
He added, “Following my discussions with President Vladimir Putin, Russia agreed to release him, primarily for humanitarian reasons. We appreciate this decision and the fact that Russia did not demand anyone in return, as no exchange took place.”
Gillman, 32, who spent four years in a Russian prison after being sentenced to four and a half years by a Russian court on charges of assaulting a police officer, “will arrive tonight at Andrews Air Force Base in Washington, DC, where representatives from my team, including some who accompanied him on the flight, will welcome him back to the United States.”
He thanked his team, “including Special Envoy for Peace Missions Steve Witkoff, Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs Adam Boehler, Senior Counterterrorism Director Sebastian Gorka, Jared Kushner, and many others who made this possible.”
For his part, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio thanked Russia for its cooperation in securing Gillman’s release and stressed the need to free Americans “wrongfully detained” abroad.
In a statement released by the US State Department, Rubio said: “Mr. Gillman joins more than 100 Americans whom President Trump secured for release during his second term in office. We thank Russia for its cooperation with Special Envoy Steve Witkoff in securing Mr. Gillman’s release and allowing him to receive necessary medical treatment here in the United States.”
He emphasized that “while we appreciate this positive step, we continue to pursue the immediate return of all other wrongfully detained Americans.”
The US State Department had previously designated Gillman as a “wrongfully detained” citizen in early August, after he had spent more than four years in Russian prisons since his arrest in January 2022, during which his health had deteriorated significantly.
