US and Russia deny prisoner swap for American and Russian blogger

Russia and the US have both denied that Russia released American Stephen Hubbard from prison in exchange for the recent release of a Russian war blogger detained in Montenegro, whom Washington has accused of election interference. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Hubbard, a 74-year-old US citizen held since 2022, was freed as a humanitarian goodwill gesture. US President Donald Trump said he had asked Putin to free Hubbard and that Russia sought nothing in return, with a State Department spokesperson confirming the release was unilateral and not part of an exchange. The Russian war blogger, Mikhail Zvinchuk, a former Defence Ministry official and director of the Rybar media organization, was detained in Montenegro on charges of spreading Russian influence and expelled on October 9. The US had offered $10 million for information on Rybar employees, and Moscow denies Western accusations of misinformation campaigns.