On Wednesday, Russian authorities released 74-year-old American citizen Stephen Hubbard, after he was arrested by Russian forces in Ukraine in 2022. Russian media reported, citing Putin, that Hubbard is at Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg The announcement of Hubbard's release came during a meeting between Putin and Witkov, who in turn thanked the Russian President for the step. In October 2024, a Moscow court sentenced Hubbard to six years and 10 months in prison on charges of participating as a mercenary in the armed conflict, with the period of his detention starting from April 2022. The US State Department described Hubbard as “arbitrarily detained,” and he is the last American in Russia to be officially classified as such, while up to ten other Americans, including dual nationals, remain in Russian detention.