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What is the story about?
President Vladimir Putin announced the release of American citizen Stephen Hubbard from Russian detention on Wednesday, at the start of talks with US special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Hubbard, 74, a retired schoolteacher, grew up in Big Rapids, Michigan, and served in the US Air Force and National Guard, according to military records cited by the New York Times.
He earned a master’s degree in English and lived in Japan for 25 years where he taught English before moving to Cyprus and then, in 2014, to Izyum in eastern Ukraine with a Ukrainian partner, according to his sister, Patricia Hubbard Fox.
Fox told Reuters in 2024 that Hubbard subsisted on a pension of about $300 a month and had few connections with local people. The siblings last spoke in September 2021.
Russia launched its full-scale war in Ukraine in February 2022 and captured Izyum two months later. Ukrainian forces retook the city in September 2022, but Hubbard was already in Russian custody by then.
Russian state media said Hubbard had been detained in April 2022 and alleged he had been manning a Ukrainian military checkpoint. Reuters could not independently establish the circumstances of his capture.
Fox said she recognised her brother in a YouTube video showing a man being questioned about his views on Putin and the war. Another video showed him with his hands bound, being struck with a sandal. Reuters could not verify when or where the videos were recorded.
Also read: US envoy Witkoff arrives in St Petersburg for talks with Putin
Following a closed trial, a Moscow court convicted Hubbard of being a mercenary in October 2024 and sentenced him to six years and 10 months in prison. Prosecutors said Hubbard had joined a Ukrainian territorial defence unit, received training, weapons and ammunition, and was promised $1,000 a month. Russian state media said he had pleaded guilty to the charges he faced.
Fox questioned the reported confession, however, saying Hubbard held pro-Russian views and was unlikely to have taken up arms in his seventies.
Martin De Luca, his US-based lawyer, told Reuters in June 2025 that Hubbard had told him the charges against him were false and that he was not in any combat or military unit. He cited Hubbard as telling him Russian soldiers had simply grabbed him from his house.
In January 2025, Washington designated Hubbard as wrongfully detained, enabling the US government to pursue negotiations for his release.
The State Department has said Russia refused to grant US officials consular access.
The New York Times reported in February 2025 that Hubbard had been moved through at least five Russian detention centres before his trial.
His lawyer said Hubbard’s legal team found out only in April 2025 that he was being held in a facility in the Mordovia region, east of Moscow.
Hubbard, 74, a retired schoolteacher, grew up in Big Rapids, Michigan, and served in the US Air Force and National Guard, according to military records cited by the New York Times.
He earned a master’s degree in English and lived in Japan for 25 years where he taught English before moving to Cyprus and then, in 2014, to Izyum in eastern Ukraine with a Ukrainian partner, according to his sister, Patricia Hubbard Fox.
Fox told Reuters in 2024 that Hubbard subsisted on a pension of about $300 a month and had few connections with local people. The siblings last spoke in September 2021.
How was he captured?
Russia launched its full-scale war in Ukraine in February 2022 and captured Izyum two months later. Ukrainian forces retook the city in September 2022, but Hubbard was already in Russian custody by then.
Russian state media said Hubbard had been detained in April 2022 and alleged he had been manning a Ukrainian military checkpoint. Reuters could not independently establish the circumstances of his capture.
Fox said she recognised her brother in a YouTube video showing a man being questioned about his views on Putin and the war. Another video showed him with his hands bound, being struck with a sandal. Reuters could not verify when or where the videos were recorded.
Also read: US envoy Witkoff arrives in St Petersburg for talks with Putin
Why was he imprisoned?
Following a closed trial, a Moscow court convicted Hubbard of being a mercenary in October 2024 and sentenced him to six years and 10 months in prison. Prosecutors said Hubbard had joined a Ukrainian territorial defence unit, received training, weapons and ammunition, and was promised $1,000 a month. Russian state media said he had pleaded guilty to the charges he faced.
Fox questioned the reported confession, however, saying Hubbard held pro-Russian views and was unlikely to have taken up arms in his seventies.
Martin De Luca, his US-based lawyer, told Reuters in June 2025 that Hubbard had told him the charges against him were false and that he was not in any combat or military unit. He cited Hubbard as telling him Russian soldiers had simply grabbed him from his house.
What is Hubbard's current status?
In January 2025, Washington designated Hubbard as wrongfully detained, enabling the US government to pursue negotiations for his release.
The State Department has said Russia refused to grant US officials consular access.
The New York Times reported in February 2025 that Hubbard had been moved through at least five Russian detention centres before his trial.
His lawyer said Hubbard’s legal team found out only in April 2025 that he was being held in a facility in the Mordovia region, east of Moscow.
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