Marc Fogel returns to US after release from Russia in Trump-brokered deal

American Marc Fogel returned to the US on February 11 night after being released from Russia, where he had been imprisoned since 2021 on marijuana-related charges.

His release was part of a deal facilitated by President Trump’s special envoy, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

The Trump administration celebrated Fogel’s return, viewing it as a sign of potential improvements in US-Russia relations and the possibility of progress in negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.

Earlier in the day, the envoy, Steve Witkoff, had been spotted in Moscow by flight trackers, though the Kremlin denied knowledge of his presence. Upon his arrival at the White House, Fogel was warmly greeted by Trump on the South Lawn, wearing an American flag around his neck, and expressed his gratitude to the president, his team, and the Fogel family.

“I feel like the luckiest man on earth right now,” Fogel said. “I will forever be indebted to President Trump, to Steve over there.” “It’s great to have you back,” Trump replied. “I appreciate very much what they did in letting Marc go home…We got a man home whose mother and family wanted him desperately, whose state wanted him.”

Trump did not provide a direct response to a reporter’s question about the deal that secured Marc Fogel’s release, instead describing it as “very fair” and hinting that another prisoner could be released as early as February 12, though he did not clarify if that person would be American or Russian.

Instead, Trump emphasized the importance of goodwill regarding the war, calling the evening “very important for ending that war,” referring to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Fogel’s release underscores Trump's unconventional approach to negotiations with Russia, as he seemingly bypassed formal diplomatic channels and relied on his personal envoy, Steve Witkoff, to handle the exchange.

Witkoff, a real estate mogul and close friend of Trump, has previously served as a Middle East envoy, a role once held by Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, during his first term. Fogel was among around two dozen Americans and US-Russian dual citizens detained in Russian prisons and labour camps amid deteriorating relations with Moscow.

Last year, the Biden administration officially designated him as wrongfully detained. Fogel had been arrested in 2021 at a Moscow airport after authorities found less than an ounce of medical marijuana in his luggage, which he claimed had been prescribed for his back pain. 

In 2022, he was convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to 14 years in prison. He had travelled to Moscow with his wife to teach at the Anglo-American School of Moscow. His family grew increasingly frustrated under the Biden administration as efforts to secure his release on humanitarian grounds failed. Fogel was excluded from a large prisoner exchange last year that secured the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan. That swap followed intricate negotiations between the US, Russia, and Germany, with Berlin agreeing to Moscow's key condition—the release of convicted Russian assassin Vadim Krasikov.

By Naila Huseynova