Joe Biden, Kamala Harris greet prisoners after swap with Russia

Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, and Alsu Kurmasheva were met by cheers from family and friends as they disembarked a plane.

Joe Biden looks on as Evan Gershkovich greets his mother Ella Milman after he arrived at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on Friday. Picture: AFP

President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris hugged journalist Evan Gershkovich on Friday as he and two other Americans arrived back on US soil after being freed by Russia in a huge prisoner swap.

Wall Street Journal reporter Gershkovich, former marine Paul Whelan, and journalist Alsu Kurmasheva were met by cheers from family and friends as they disembarked a plane, before each embracing Mr Biden and Ms Harris.

“It feels wonderful, it was a long time coming,” Mr Biden said at Joint Base Andrews near Washington, where he and Ms Harris welcomed the freed prisoners about 11.40pm on Thursday (1.40pm Friday AEST).

They were among two dozen detainees released earlier on Thursday in the biggest East-West prisoner swap since the Cold War.

A fourth freed prisoner, Vladimir Kara-Murza, a Russian Kremlin critic with US residency, was also among those freed but was returning separately to the US.

In total 10 Russians, including two minors, were traded for 16 Westerners and Russians imprisoned in Russia in a dramatic ­exchange on the airport tarmac in Turkey’s capital Ankara.

The prisoners were flown to Ankara from Russia, the US, Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway and Belarus under the deal.

“Alliances make a difference. They stepped up and took a chance for us,” Mr Biden said of the deal, which also involved Germany, Poland, Slovenia and Norway, and Belarus on the other side.

Alsu Kurmasheva embraces her family as she lands on US soil. Picture: AFP

Ms Harris, who is the presumptive Democrat presidential nominee after Mr Biden dropped out of the 2024 election, heralded “an ­extraordinary day”.

The freed prisoners and their relatives are expected to travel to San Antonio, Texas, for medical evaluations and any care they need.

The most high-profile prisoner was Gershkovich, 32, who was ­detained in Russia in March last year on a reporting trip and sentenced last month to 16 years in prison on trumped-up spying charges, that were denounced by the US and the Journal.

Gershkovich smiled with his hands on his hips as he stepped onto the runway, before hugging Mr Biden and Ms Harris and speaking with them for about a minute. “Not bad,” he replied as he greeted fellow journalists who asked how it felt to finally be home.

Gershkovich’s family said in a statement before his arrival that they had “waited 491 days for Evan’s ­release”.

“We can’t wait to give him the biggest hug and see his sweet and brave smile up close,” they said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had earlier given his own hero’s welcome to the freed prisoners from his country, in a mirror image of the ceremony that would unfold in the US. They included Vadim Krasikov, a Russian intelligence agent jailed in Germany for assassinating a former Chechen rebel.

“I want to congratulate you on your return to the motherland,” Putin said. “I would like to thank you for your loyalty to the oath, devotion to your duty and your motherland, that hasn’t forgotten you for a minute and now you are home.”

The historic swap happened after months of top secret negotiations and involved the release of Russians held for murder, espionage and other crimes.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the swap was “difficult” but had “saved lives”.

Berlin agreed to take 12 detainees, including five with German nationality. Among them was Rico Krieger, a German who was sentenced to death in Belarus on espionage charges.

Speculation about a deal had swirled for days after several ­detainees had disappeared from the prison system, but there was no confirmation until they finally switched planes in Ankara.

“We held our breath and crossed our fingers,” US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said.

The exchange was the first ­between Russia and the West since star US basketball player Brittney Griner went home in ­return for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout in December 2022. It was the biggest since 2010, when 14 alleged spies were exchanged. They included double agent Sergei Skripal, who was sent by Moscow to Britain and undercover Russian agent Anna Chapman, sent by Washington to Russia.

More than a dozen people had previously only taken place during the Cold War, in 1985 and 1986.

The White House revealed that an even more ambitious agreement had been on the cards with attempts to negotiate the release of Putin opponent Alexei Navalny, before he died in February.

AFP