# Putin orders release of jailed American as he meets Trump envoy for Ukraine talks

https://mins.news/en/item/109401

- The Guardian, 2026-10-21 11:50 UTC
- World
- Original: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/21/putin-witkoff-russia-ukraine-trump-stephen-hubbard-release

> Putin met Trump envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg on Wednesday for talks on ending the war in Ukraine, while Russia unilaterally released Stephen Hubbard, an American jailed for more than four years. Trump had asked for Hubbard’s release, and Witkoff praised Putin as a “humanitarian.”

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