LANSING, Mich. — The United States and Russia brokered a prisoner swap deal Thursday that allowed for a Michigan corporate security executive and a reporter at The Wall Street Journal to return home.
Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich, alongside dissidents including Vladimir Kara-Murza, were part of a multinational deal that set two dozen people free, officials said.
The trade brought home Michigan-native Paul Whelan, who has been detained in Russia on espionage charges since Dec. 28, 2018. Whelan served a little over five years and seven months of a 26-year sentence before being released on Aug. 1, 2024.
President Biden delivered a special announcement of the swap Thursday afternoon. Biden remarked that the "brutal ordeal is over" for the prisoners who have been released.
"It's an incredible relief for all the family members gathered here," Biden said. "It's a relief to the friends and colleagues all across the country who've been praying for this day for a long time."
Following the announcement of the prisoner swap, lawmakers across the state have been releasing statements about the deal.
U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow
“Wonderful news today! After more than five years, Paul Whelan is coming home. I know the past years have been excruciating for Paul and his family. I’m so glad they will be seeing Paul soon. Thank you to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for your incredible work to bring these Americans home.”
U.S. Senator Gary Peters
“Today is a joyous and long overdue day for Paul, his family, and all who have been working tirelessly to get him back home to Michigan. For the past several years, I have worked with Administration officials, my colleagues, and Paul’s family to press for his release, and I’m beyond relieved that today marks the end of this unimaginable nightmare for Paul and his loved ones. Michigan welcomes him home with open arms.
I’m also relieved that American journalist Evan Gershkovich, who was wrongly imprisoned by Russian authorities for simply doing his job, will too be coming home to his family and friends.”
U.S. Congressman John Moolenaar
“Paul Whelan is a former Marine who has been unjustly imprisoned by Russia for more than five years. In Michigan, we prayed for his release and never forgot him as he was held by Putin’s corrupt government on bogus charges. I am thankful he will soon be reunited with his family.”
U.S. Congressman Tim Walberg
"I’m overjoyed to hear of reports that Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich are coming home. Paul’s parents, Ed and Rosemary, were constituents of mine and have spent nearly six agonizing years wondering if they’d ever get to see their son again. Paul’s siblings, Elizabeth and David, have done everything in their power to bring him home and never lost hope, even during the dimmest days. Paul and Evan are innocent Americans who have been wrongly detained simply to increase the Kremlin’s geopolitical bargaining power.
While the release of Paul and Evan is long overdue and worthy of celebration, we must be careful not to establish a new norm by accepting when our adversaries conflate innocent civilians with real criminals. This puts every American at risk and turns them into a bargaining chip, opening the door for future wrongful detainments and forcing more Americans to live the nightmares Paul and Evan have lived."