Stephen Hubbard is coming home. He's a 74-year-old American from Michigan who spent more than four years in Russian custody after being accused of fighting for Ukraine. According to CBS News, U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff confirmed the release on Wednesday while meeting Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg. Hubbard is a retired teacher who served in the National Guard and Air Force. He was captured in Ukraine soon after Russia invaded in 2022 and later sentenced to nearly seven years. His family says he's innocent. He's in poor health and is expected to be flown to a military hospital in Texas.

President Trump says Putin let Hubbard go at his personal request, with "no 'swap' necessary." In a later Truth Social post, though, Trump tied the release to his decision last week to waive new sanctions on Russia right before they took effect. He said those talks would have collapsed if the sanctions had gone through. That move drew pushback in Congress, including from some Republicans. Witkoff also faced attention for thanking Putin on camera and calling him "a humanitarian."

Hubbard was the last American in Russia whom the U.S. had officially labeled wrongfully detained. Up to 10 other Americans are still held there, including dual citizens. His release follows ex-Marine Robert Gilman's in August and teacher Marc Fogel's early last year. The State Department still warns Americans not to travel to Russia at all because of the risk of being detained.