Johnson and McConnell: Russia prisoner swap ‘does little to discourage Putin’

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) issued a joint statement on the massive prisoner swap with Russia, applauding the release of the Americans, but expressing concern about the costs of hostage diplomacy and how trade “does little to discourage Putin’s reprehensible behavior.”

“The release of innocent American and Russian political prisoners from unjust detention is encouraging news. We eagerly await the return of Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva and Vladimir Kara-Murza to their homes and loved ones and will continue to press for all Americans to be released,” Johnson and McConnell said in a statement Thursday.

The prisoner exchange marked the largest prisoner exchange since the Cold War and involved seven countries. In addition to the four Americans, five Germans and seven Russian citizens were released. In total, 24 prisoners were exchanged.

Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, was arrested on espionage charges in Russia in March 2023 and convicted in what U.S. authorities called a mock trial. Whelan, a former Marine, was first arrested in 2018 and convicted on espionage charges that he denied.

“Their unjust captivity will be a lasting reminder of the Russian government’s long-standing fear of free people and the free press. And the continued imprisonment of American citizens and innocent Russians is a damning indictment of Vladimir Putin’s hostility toward the United States and his disdain for the rule of law,” Johnson and McConnell continued.

The two top Republicans in Congress then turned to their concerns about hostage diplomacy.

“Without serious action to deter further hostage-taking by Russia, Iran, and other states hostile to the United States, the costs of hostage diplomacy will continue to rise. As we renew our call for the return of all people unjustly detained by the Kremlin, we recognize that exchanging hardened Russian criminals for innocent Americans does little to discourage Putin’s reprehensible behavior,” the two Republican Party leaders said.

Among the freed Russians was Vadim Krasikov, who was serving a life sentence in Germany for killing a Georgian citizen in Berlin and who was believed to have acted on orders from Russian authorities – and who Russia was particularly interested in releasing.

On Thursday, former President Trump took to his Truth Social website asking for more details about the prisoner exchange and questioning whether the US paid for the Americans’ release.

“So when are they going to release the details of the prisoner swap with Russia? How many people do we have against them? Are we also paying them in cash? Are they giving us money (please remove this question because I’m sure the answer is NO)?” Trump said in part of his post.

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said no money was exchanged as part of the prisoner exchange.

This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story