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At the end of May, Donald Trump claimed on Truth Social that President Vladimir Putin would release Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, "for me, but not for anyone else." Today, President Joe Biden was the one to successfully bring Gershkovich home, along with two other American citizens and one green card-holder detained in Russia.
Biden announced the prisoner swap on Thursday, which included at least six countries and two dozen prisoners. Gershkovich had been detained in Russia for nearly 500 days since his initial arrest and the US was continuously negotiating his release.
Trump made his May pronouncement as the Biden administration was engaged in those ongoing talks.
"Evan Gershkovich, the Reporter from The Wall Street Journal, who is being held by Russia, will be released almost immediately after the Election, but definitely before I assume Office," he wrote. "He will be HOME, SAFE, AND WITH HIS FAMILY. Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, will do that for me, but not for anyone else, and WE WILL BE PAYING NOTHING!"
In response to the claims, a spokesperson for the Kremlin said that Trump had no contact with Putin and spokesperson for the Biden campaign said that "for Donald Trump, these wrongfully imprisoned Americans are political weapons and props to use for his own gain."
A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
In addition to Gershkovich, Biden helped secure the release of Paul Whelan, a former US Marine detained since 2018; Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian-American journalist; and Vladimir Kara-Murza, legal permanent resident in the United States.
Biden specified in a letter that in sum, 16 prisoners were released from Russia, including five Germans and seven Russian citizens. The prisoner swap, the largest since the Cold War, relied on multiple countries: Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Turkey.
Speaking at a press conference, Biden emphasized the importance of ally relationships and thanked the countries involved in the deal, calling it a "powerful example of why it's vital to have friends in this world." The president said that he had spoken to those freed on the phone and that they should be on American soil within a few hours.
When asked about Trump's comments that he alone could secure a deal from Putin, Biden fired a question back in response.
"Why didn't he do it when he was president?"
