Free at Last, but Tinged With Trepidation
Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich were released in a prisoner swap, but Biden’s weakness has set a dangerous precedent.
It has been well over a year since Evan Gershkovich was arrested. Paul Whelan, a former Marine who visited Russia for a wedding, has been rotting in prison since 2018. Aslu Kurmasheva, a Russian American journalist, has been separated from her husband and two teenaged daughters since her arrest in 2023.
Yesterday, though, these falsely detained American citizens were finally released and are home safe on U.S. soil.
In a complex prisoner exchange, three Americans, one U.S. green-card holder, and 12 political dissidents were released from Russian prisons in exchange for eight Russians. This was the largest East-West swap since the Cold War.
Why was it so large? According to The Wall Street Journal, “White House officials, U.S. diplomats and personnel from the Central Intelligence Agency had crisscrossed Europe and the Middle East looking for friendly governments willing to release the Russian spies in their custody in return for Americans held by the Kremlin.”
Germany had custody of the main prisoner of interest to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin in this exchange. Germany demanded its own hefty price from Russia as a result.
Just as with the Brittney Griner exchange, Putin was most interested in getting back a useful Russian asset. This time, the linchpin was a hitman and former intelligence officer named Vadim Krasikov, who was arrested for murdering a former Chechen fighter and rebel in 2019. Putin greeted all eight of his returning comrades with the red carpet treatment and a personal embrace.
Friends and families of the released prisoners were overjoyed. Gershkovich’s bosses at The Wall Street Journal are very relieved to have him back home and safe. WSJ publisher Almar Latour and Editor-in-Chief Emma Tucker expressed that they “condemn in the strongest terms Vladimir Putin’s regime in Russia, which orchestrated Evan’s 491-day wrongful imprisonment based on sham accusations and a fake trial as part of an all-out assault on the free press and truth. Unfortunately, many journalists remain unjustly imprisoned in Russia and around the world.”
President Joe Biden declared at a press conference that “this is a good day. Now their brutal ordeal is over and they are free.” Biden also met the returning prisoners when they landed.
Vice President Kamala Harris posted on social media: “Today, we celebrate the release of Paul, Evan, Alsu, Vladimir, and others who were unjustly held in Russia. It gives me great comfort to know that their horrible ordeal is over and that they will soon be reunited with their families. @POTUS and I will not stop working until every American who is wrongfully detained or held hostage is brought home.”
As joyous as the return is of unjustly imprisoned Americans, it is tinged with trepidation. Because of the foreign policy weakness Biden has displayed, he has set a precedent for hostile foreign nations to take advantage of the U.S. Need a murderer released? Kidnap and imprison an American or two. This will keep happening if we don’t have an administration that is willing to make our foreign adversaries pay a steep price.
There have to be actual consequences when Russia imprisons American citizens with impunity. When Gershkovich was taken, no Russians were arrested in retaliation, and no Russian journalists or diplomats were expelled.
As the WSJ editors note, “Our reporter is finally free, but he won’t be the last American taken if U.S. policy doesn’t change.” Deterrence is the only way to stop a bad actor.
