Putin orders release of jailed American during talks with Trump envoy on Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin met US President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg on Wednesday to discuss ending the war in Ukraine, and ordered the release of jailed American Stephen Hubbard during the meeting. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine is now in its fifth year, and negotiations have stalled.

Release of the American

Hubbard is a 74-year-old former teacher who spent more than four years in Russian jails, accused of fighting as a mercenary for Ukraine. Unlike many earlier cases, he was freed unilaterally rather than in a prisoner exchange. Trump wrote on Truth Social that the release followed a request he made directly to Putin last week and that the US had to give nothing in return.

The Guardian assessed the move as a calculated attempt to bring Trump closer to Putin's position on Ukraine while giving the US president a diplomatic win ahead of the midterm elections.

Talks and tension with Kyiv

Witkoff, on his ninth visit to Russia since being tasked with brokering an end to the war, praised Putin as a humanitarian. He also thanked him for a deal to resume Russian diesel exports to the US and handed over papers with ideas for a peace deal. Before that, he had met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders in Oslo.

US-Ukraine relations have been strained since Trump lifted sanctions on Russian diesel and called for Zelenskyy to be replaced after Ukraine refused to stop strikes on Russian oil refineries. Kyiv complains of disruptions to intelligence-sharing and restrictions on Starshield, the military version of Elon Musk's Starlink. Zelenskyy said Washington had resumed advance warnings of Russian missile attacks.

Moscow's position appears unchanged: it has shown little sign of halting its bombardment and still demands full control of the Donetsk region. The first diesel tanker to the US is due to depart on Thursday, carrying about 300,000 tonnes.