An American is one of three hostages released from Belarus, the White House has announced.
The identity of the hostage has not been released as the person wishes to remain private, U.S. Envoy for Hostages Adam Boehler said.
‘He’s made bringing hostages home a top priority and people respect that,’ Boehler said of President Donald Trump while announcing the releases.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt hailed the releases as another example of the president’s strong leadership skills.
‘That speaks to President Trump’s dealmaking ability,’ Leavitt said.
Leavitt said the two other prisoners released were Belarus nationals, one of whom is a journalist for Radio Liberty, a U.S. government-funded media organization. The outlet named the journalist as Andrey Kuznechyk, who worked for the outlet’s Belarus service.
Radio Liberty said that Kuznechyk had been detained initially for 10 days on hooliganism charges and then kept in prison on accusations that he had created or participated in an extremist organization. The outlet said the charges were politically motivated.
‘It’s a remarkable victory on the heels of Marc Fogel returning to America last night,’ Leavitt said.
Fogel, an American who had been detained in Russia since 2021, landed back in the U.S. on Tuesday. The history teacher was working at the Anglo-American School in Moscow and returned to the U.S. after his release from Russia following talks with the Trump administration.
He was serving a 14-year sentence after his arrest in August 2021 at a Russian airport for possession of drugs, which his family said was medically prescribed marijuana.
Wednesday’s announcement came just moments after Trump posted to Truth Social that he had a lengthy and highly productive phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Those discussions included the Russian leader agreeing to ‘immediately’ begin negotiations over the war in Ukraine.
Last month, American Anastassia Nuhfer was also released from a Belarus prison. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the release at the time and said that she had been ‘taken’ under the Biden administration.
It wasn’t clear why she was detained, but a former high-ranking Belarusian diplomat indicated that her detention was connected to the 2020 protests in Belarus. The exact nature of her involvement remains unclear.
Fox News understands today’s release was the second part of a two-part deal, with Nuhfer’s release being the first part.
Belarus, formerly part of the Soviet Union, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe that is closely allied with Russia. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko extended his more than three decades in power last month in what political commentators say were orchestrated elections.