Trump: Russia has sent a signal that could help end the war in Ukraine
12 February 2025 09:53
US President Donald Trump has said that the release of US citizen Mark Fogel will mark the beginning of a new relationship with Russia that could help end the war. This is reported by WCIA TV channel, "Komersant Ukrainian" informs.
Trump met with Mark Fogel, who was released from prison by Russia, at the White House. Trump expressed hope that this would mark the “beginning of a relationship” that would end the war in Ukraine.
“Russia has been very good to us. I hope that this is the beginning of a relationship where we can end this war,” Trump told reporters at the White House a few hours after announcing Vogel’s release.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the release of another American, CNN reports, but did not comment on whether this person is also in Russia.
On his X account, Trump wrote that he promised to “get” Mark Vogel out of his 95-year-old mother’s house at a rally before the election:
“And we got him out pretty quickly.”
It should be noted that Russia released US citizen Mark Fogel from prison on February 11. The Trump administration announced that it had reached an agreement with Moscow. Fogel was followed to Russia by Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy for the Middle East.
Michael Walts, Trump’s national security adviser, said that the United States and Russia “negotiated an exchange” to secure Vogel’s release.
He did not say what the U.S. side of the deal envisioned. Previous negotiations have at times included the reciprocal release of Russians by the United States or its allies.
Trump also did not say what the U.S. had exchanged for Vogel’s release.
In 2022, Mark Vogel was sentenced to 14 years in prison in Russia. In August 2021, Vogel was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport because of medical marijuana and hashish oil that he had been prescribed in the United States to relieve pain after spinal surgery. Vogel was a teacher at an American school in Moscow and a former employee of the American Embassy. He spent more than three years in prison.
