one of the most surprising is vladimir kara-murza, one of the harshest critics of vladimir putin. became a leader of the russian opposition. he had many supporters in the west including john mccain. he was a pallbearer at mccain's funeral in 2018, along with future president, joe biden. by then he had been hospitalized twice with organ failure and other symptoms that suggested he had been poisoned, which is the favorite kremlin method for dealing with its opponents. he spent more time after that in the pest, but then putin invaded ukraine in 2022 and he decided he had to return to moscow to aid the antiwar opposition. last year fellow activist bill browder and said vladimir, there is no way you could go back to moscow. they have tried to kill you twice. they'll try it again. at best they'll rest you. but he was not having it. he said bill, i'm a russian politician. all russians should stand up to putin. but how can i ask others to do that if i'm too afraid to return to my own country? i must be there. and so he returned to russia a month and a half after putin invaded ukraine, whi

in fact, vladimir kara murza is very sick. he was poisoned twice.oncern that he might die kind of like nevada me say, these are these are again the realities of the situation all right. >> well, jill, thank you very much as we await more confirmation on these names, we do have some more breaking news coming in right now. from the white house where kayla tausche, our senior correspondent, is and it kayla, you have reporting here on the families of american prisoners. they are where you are right now erin, i've just learned according to a source with knowledge of the matter that the families of the americans the involved in today's prisoner swap are here at the white house. >> i'm told they are currently gathered in the roosevelt room of the west wing while president biden is in the oval office where he has it's been briefed throughout the morning. he arrived in the west wing just about an hour ago, according to our reporting. now, of course, these families are familiar to president biden. he's met with at them multiple times over multiple years as th

it saw vladimir kara—murza taken to germany — where, after seeing his family for the first time in twot. vladimir kara—murza thought he'd never see his wife again. a week ago, the opposition activist was in a siberian prison cell, and he still can't quite believe he's free. he was only allowed one call to evgenia in two years. i remember, i asked at the end of that phone call, "do you think we'll ever be together again?" and she said, "i don'tjust think, i'm certain." as always, she turned out to be right. he is one of eight russian dissidents released and now here in germany... ..the result of a complex prisoner exchange that surprised everyone, including the former political detainees. i was absolutely certain that i would die in putin's prison. vladimir was serving 25 years just for speaking out against vladimir putin and the ukraine war. he told me he spent the past 11 months in solitary confinement. you lose all sense of time, you lose sense of space. you lose all sense ofjust everything, really. i mean, its four walls and nothing else, and all you do the whole day is nothing. spe

now, the former russian political prisoner, vladimir kara murza. and you yevgenia kara-murza. and thanks to both of you, as i said, it's like an apparition to even see you vladimir, you thought you were going to die well, thank you. >> so much for inviting me. it's really good to be on your show and i really mean this yes. >> but you talked about that that you thought that you were never going to see them again, you thought you were going to die in prison. and yet here you are together. >> have have you even been able to process that that you are here with her and your children? no frankly, i think it's a little bit too much and too quick for human mind to process and just a little over two weeks ago, i was still sitting in my solitary confinement cell in harsh regime prison colony in siberia. and i was certain that i was going to end my life including the prison. and here i am now sitting with you in a studio in new york next to my wife and i vladimir, because ski, who is very prominent prisoner of conscience in the soviet union, who was himself exchanged famously in 1976. tha

also, prominent kremlin critics, including vladimir kara—murza, oleg orlov and ilya yashin.n anti—war artist, sasha skochilenko. swapped, among others, for this man — convicted assassin vadim krasikov, identified by german officials as a russian agent. to set up a prisoner swap... evan gershkovich�*s boss says she is overjoyed to see her reporter free, but... it feels all wrong to be trading people who are entirely innocent for, you know, a convicted criminal, an assassin, but, you know, we wanted our man back. paul whelan wanted his freedom, you know, understandably. so i think it puts governments in an impossible position. flanked by relatives of the freed americans, at the white house, president biden gave his reaction. it says a lot about the united states that we work relentlessly to free americans who are unjustly held around the world, but it also says a lot about us that this deal includes the release of russian political prisoners. they stood up for democracy, human rights, their own leaders threw them in prison. the united states helped secure their release as well

vladimir kara—murza thought he'd never see his wife again.rison cell, and he still can't quite believe he's free. he was only allowed one call to evgenia in two years. i remember, i asked at the end of that phone call, "do you think we'll ever be together again?" and she said, "i don'tjust think — i'm certain." as always, she turned out to be right. he is one of eight russian dissidents released and now, here in germany... applause ..the result of a complex prisoner exchange that surprised everyone, including the former political detainees. i was absolutely certain that i would die in putin's prison. vladimir was serving 25 years just for speaking out against vladimir putin and the ukraine war. he told me he spent the past 11 months in solitary confinement. you lose sense of time, you lose sense of space, you lose sense ofjust everything, really. i mean, its four walls and nothing else, and all you do the whole day is nothing. speak to no—one, go nowhere. and this is day after day after day after day. the day two guards burst into his tiny ce

vladimir kara—murza, he said that it feels like a film and feels surreal.ail like a film and feels surreal. you were injail somewhere like a film and feels surreal. you were in jail somewhere deep like a film and feels surreal. you were injail somewhere deep in russia, and then you are in germany, free, and that was a very new feeling to them, especially for vladimir kara—murza, who said he spent a long time in solitary confinement.— spent a long time in solitary confinement. , ., ., ., , , confinement. these negotiations seem to have taken — confinement. these negotiations seem to have taken months, _ confinement. these negotiations seem to have taken months, but _ confinement. these negotiations seem to have taken months, but you - confinement. these negotiations seem to have taken months, but you could i to have taken months, but you could tell from that press conference that it was a complete surprise to them that they were being released. one of the things that really surprised me is all of them saying that one day they want to return to russia. absolu

air force base the president and the vice president will be out there there to greet them. >> vladimir kara-murza is going to be traveling to germany and his family who was here with the president this morning will be traveling there to join him but as vladimir and the president discussed today, we expect him back here in the united states soon for him to be able to see the president and other people in the us government yeah. >> thank you, jake, switching gears for a moment. >> i want to ask you about the new deal reached 11 suspects military and military courts down one time ago republicans are condemning this as showing weakness and calling it a sweetheart deal. you'll, because it avoids a trial in the death penalty. >> just wondering if laceration has any response to that as we said last night, the white house received word that we have been listening to national security adviser jake sullivan, answering questions about this history storch, prisoner swap between russia and the u.s. and several other countries. answering a lot of the questions actually that were posed, but also not all of them

also, prominent kremlin critics, including vladimir kara—murza, oleg orlov and ilya yashin.ar artist, sasha skochilenko. swapped, among others, for this man — convicted assassin vadim krasikov, identified by german officials as a russian agent. to set up a prisoner swap... evan gershkovich�*s boss says she is overjoyed to see her reporter free, but... it feels all wrong to be trading people who are entirely innocent for, you know, a convicted criminal, an assassin, but, you know, we wanted our man back. paul whelan wanted his freedom, you know, understandably. so i think it puts governments in an impossible position. flanked by relatives of the freed americans, at the white house, president biden gave his reaction. it says a lot about the united states that we work relentlessly to free americans who are unjustly held around the world, but it also says a lot about us that this deal includes the release of russian political prisoners. they stood up for democracy, human rights, their own leaders threw them in prison. the united states helped secure their release as well. americ

also on that plane is leading kremlin critic vladimir kara—murza. president are going to be greeting those on board the plane as they land. well, we can go live to joint base andrew and join my colleague will grant. bring us up—to—date on what is happening where you are? this on what is happening where you are? �* , , ., on what is happening where you are? n on what is happening where you are? a ., ., are? as you say, a motorcade arrived and — are? as you say, a motorcade arrived and we _ are? as you say, a motorcade arrived and we believe - are? as you say, a motorcade arrived and we believe that i are? as you say, a motorcade i arrived and we believe that was vice president harris�*s motorcade. the white house press pool has arrived, indications this moment is only minutes away. among the journalists gathered here are a number of evan gershkovich's colleagues from the wall street journal, obviously in a jubilant mood, including the chief editor. the president and vice president i hear, awaiting this moment. the darker side, probably doubted this m

for the families and friends of evan gershkovich, paul whelan and dissidents like vladimir kara—murzathis is a moment to celebrate. but keep in mind — for the kremlin, it is mission accomplished. it got what it wanted. i think it was very difficult - for germany to agree to accept the idea that they would have to return a convicted assassin to russia in any circumstances. one of the biggest prisoner swaps since the cold war has taken place between russia and the west. 26 people have been traded, some after spending years behind bars. also tonight... the bbc director general has defended the decision not to sack huw edwards despite knowinghe had been arrested while in possession of the most serious images of child sexual abuse. and we will bring you the latest on the stabbing in southport. the 17—year—old attacker has appeared in court today — charged with murdering three girls and attempting to murder ten others. good evening. the largest prisoner swap between russia and the us since the cold war has taken place in ankara today. 16 people were freed from russian and belarusianjails, i

for example the wife of vladimir kara—murza has always made it quite clear, that she advocated firmlyners, especially those with serious illnesses, to be returned from russian prisons. it does seem that the scope and scale of this swap, that has been arranged, has gradually expanded to the size that we now see it being. this is a huge deal, unprecedented, and i think are so many families, all watching extremely closely of course, this could be a moment that they possibly never dared believe might happen, but they are just waiting on tenterhooks. i have been speaking to quite a few relatives and nobody wants to speak publicly for now until they see the relatives stepping off that plane but they are extremely nervous and very worried about what is happening. let extremely nervous and very worried about what is happening.— extremely nervous and very worried about what is happening. let me pick u . about what is happening. let me pick u- on that about what is happening. let me pick up on that because _ about what is happening. let me pick up on that because you _ about what is happening.

vladimir kara—murza, who wejust mentioned, sentenced to 25 years in prison.e alt and who it is hoping are going to be out today. he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for treason for criticising russia's operation or its war in ukraine. then there are people less well—known, so you have got kriger, not a name i was familiar with before, a german national who has been imprisoned in belarus, who was sentenced to deaf for sabotage, acts of sabotage on a rail track, but he was pardoned by the belarusian leader and strongman lukashenko, alexander lukashenko, and that was seen as a pollute you too probably being involved in this release. he appeared in a very tearful video pleading for the german authorities to do something to save his life and he was sort of —— there were balaclava debt relief luggage looking belarusian guard surrounding him with truncheons. it was a pretty grim video of rico krieger. then you've got, i think you actually mentioned her, alsu kurmasheva. she is a russian american journalist for radio three europe. also convicted in a secret trial

i mean, among the released is you are close friend vladimir kara murza. he was actually headed to germany. how is he and his family feeling at this hour you think about this? >> well it's a momentous day for him, for his family, for me, for all of his friends. since since he was put in jail two-and-a-half years ago, we've been working nonstop on putting pressure on the u.s. government and the british government on the eu and everyone else to make sure that that he gets released. he's in a particularly vulnerable situation because before he was put in jail, the russians had made two assassination attempts against him using poison. and the after effects of the poison had been with him for a long time. he nearly died in both students and as he was sitting in prison, in solitary confinement in siberia, he was losing this sensation in his feet and his hands from polyneuropathy, the doctor said that he wasn't going to survive two years, let alone 25 years. and so literally he was facing a death sentence in russia. we were all convinced that if we didn't get the

. >> the deal also included washington post columnist vladimir kara murza, among others now we haven't yet seen, of course, the people who are coming off and historically, just to put this in context, this has not happened, nothing close so this has happened since the end of the cold war any moment president biden will address the nation from the white house and we will of course, bring that to you live cnn and journalists are in place across the world working their sources and they're going to bring you all the latest details. >> matthew chance is in london, kylie atwood at the state department. we're going to start though with mj lee at the white house, mj. i know you have some new reporting on what to expect from president biden and some of the details that went into this historic day. >> yeah, dana, this is certainly a momentous day for the biden administration and we can now report that the president, of course, just moments ago, personally informed the families here at the white house of paul whelan evan gershkovich also kurmasheva, and vladimir kara murza three us citizens and o

prisoners because we've seen all of them except for one vladimir kara murza, green card holder his his wife and family are here in the u.s. just one month before he was arrested, christo putin invaded ukraine and volodymyr and i were talking, he was on the show and i want to just play for you one thing he said and to hear him and also see how he looked there are absolutely no limits to what vladimir putin can do. i think the world is seeing this loud and clear now as as we're witnessing this large scale land war, this large scale war crime happening right at the heart of europe christa, that was 28 months ago. and as i said, it was just after that. he was traveled, he was arrested and that's the last time that his family seem that that we've seen him we know is health is not good. we know he had been poisoned twice, even prior tohat conversation do you have any idea how he he is doing tonight we're hopeful that he's doing fine. >> we know that some of the people on the plane coming out of turkey today had health issues. we hope that he is not one of them and i just but looking forward

kara-murza had been outspoken on the show and elsewhere against russian president vladimir putin and invasion. that is illegal to do in and russia but nonetheless kara- murza, who had been traveling outside russia but was in moscow for our interview was insistent he be there. telling me he had no choice, telling me it was important because he was a russian politician and russia is his country and his home. the very next day he was arrested on charges including treason and speaking out against putin. he was subsequently sentenced to any five years in a siberian prison. despite being held in conditions hard to fathom and suffering from multiple health issues, as a result of two attempts to kill him by poisoning, kara-murza remained defiant and published numerous pieces in the washington post while in prison. even won a pulitzer prize for his work. earlier this month, kara-murza was released from prison in a historic prisoner swap. late friday i had the privilege and honor of speaking to my old friend for the first time since april 2nd, 2022 and he remains as defiant as ever. >> i just w

vladimir kara—murza shared this image of himself, along with ilya yashin and andrei pivovarov, sayinga news conference in bonn shortly. the russian prisoners released by the west include convicted hit man vadim krasikov — an agent and hit man who shot dead a kremlin opponent in berlin five years ago. also.. a family of russian sleeper agents who were pretending to be argentines — they were so deep under cover their children only found out they were russian after the flight to moscow took off. at an airbase outside washington, presidentjoe biden and vice president kamala harris greeted the returned americans — the two us journalists, evan gershkovich and alsu kurmasheva, and former marine paul whelan. president biden said he was grateful for the diplomatic co—operation that led to the swap. on the tarmac, gershkovich spoke about the political prisoners who are still in russian jails. there's one thing i'd like to say. it was great to get on that bus and see a lot of... you know, notjust americans and germans but russian political prisoners. ijust spent a month in prison where there is

among several prominent kremlin critics released was vladimir kara—murza, while in return moscow goticted assassin and fsb colonel vadim krasikov. the family of evan gershkovich echoed the position of all the relatives, expressing heartfelt thanks that their son was free, saying, "we have waited 491 days for evan's release and it's hard to describe what today feels like. "we can't wait to give him the biggest hug and see his sweet and brave smile up close." so even amid the glare of the world's media, this is also a uniquely private moment for the former prisoners and their families. a homecoming which at times they must have feared might never come. will grant, bbc news, washington. our eastern europe correspondent, sarah rainsford, who's in berlin, has more. i think this is seen as a deal in which both parties get what they want. it's been an extremely complex deal to negotiate, led by the united states but engaging very directly with the regime of vladimir putin although not with him personally. it is clear that mr putin made it clear that there was one person he wanted back in re

among several prominent kremlin critics released was vladimir kara—murza, while in return moscow gotsassin and fsb colonel vadim krasikov. the family of evan gershkovich echoed the position of all the relatives, expressing heartfelt thanks that their son was free, saying, "we have waited 491 days for evan's release and it's hard to describe what today feels like. "we can't wait to give him the biggest hug and see his sweet and brave smile up close." so even amid the glare of the world's media, this is also a uniquely private moment for the former prisoners and their families. a homecoming which at times they must have feared might never come. will grant, bbc news, washington. and ijust and i just want to bring and ijust want to bring you some lines we are getting from the reuters news agency that we are getting from the kremlin. the kremlin has said that vadim krasikov, the hitman returned by germany in the prisoner swap, was an employee of russia's fsb security service that we were talking about and had served in alpha group. they go on to say the kremlin has said that the idea that

paul whelan, evan gershkovich, alsu kurmasheva, vladimir kara-murza are finally coming home. i had the pleasure of jutting the president to share the wonderful news with the families and together they spoke with paul, evan, alsu and lavinia on the tarmac with u.s. officials when the exchange happened. to say everyone in the room was overjoyed or even at a loss for words is an understatement. since taking office, president biden and vice president harris have made clear they will not stop working until every american wrongfully detained or held hostage around the world is brought back home. as an administration, we are proud to celebrate the return home of over 70 such americans from places around the world like afghanistan, burma, gaza, haiti, iran, russia, venezuela, rwanda and elsewhere. today's exchange is a feat of diplomacy that honestly could only achieved by a leader like joe biden. at his direction, the professionals in our national security foreign policy and intelligence community work tirelessly and relentlessly to secure the release of 16 individuals who were deta

if vladimir kara—murza comes out as well, it will remain to be seen what kind of health state he is inical condition as a result of being poisoned twice.— condition as a result of being poisoned twice. condition as a result of being oisoned twice. ., ~ , ., , . poisoned twice. thank you very much for that, poisoned twice. thank you very much forthat. helen _ poisoned twice. thank you very much for that, helen humphrey. _ poisoned twice. thank you very much for that, helen humphrey. let's - forthat, helen humphrey. let's bring you right up to date with the latest lines we are getting about this prisoner exchange. remember, we have heard that 26 prisoners are involved from a total of seven countries, including the usa and russia. now, we are seeing from ankara, where the prisoners are being swapped. if you like, it is the hub for this prisoner exchange. a russianjail in germany for killing a church union is among the prisoners released, says ankara. we have been hearing from the turkish presidency and they have been talking thereabout vadim krasikov, a former fsb intelligence officer, wh

in addition, vladimir kara—murza, the russian—british journalist who holds a us green card, was freede deal. in an address to the nation after news of the deal was made public, president biden said the deal was the result of difficult, complex negotiations. he said that the us will continue to work to free americans who are detained abroad. the president and the vice president, kamala harris, are scheduled to welcome the freed americans on the tarmac ofjoint base andrews in maryland. this is expected to happen in a little more than two hours from now, at 11:30pm local time. with more now on the prisoner swap, here's our russia editor, steve rosenberg. —— will grant. describe what the mood is at the moment? figs the mood is at the moment? as ou can the mood is at the moment? sis you can imagine, the mood is at the moment? is you can imagine, it is beginning to grow in anticipation, the sense that there is only less than two hours until that airline arise bringing the most high—profile us prisoners in modern time back to your soul. a real moment of celebration, obviously, for the familie

also, prominent kremlin critics, including vladimir kara—murza, oleg orlov and ilya yashin.ped, among others, for this man — convicted assassin vadim krasikov, identified by german officials as a russian agent. to set up a prisoner swap... evan gershkovich's boss says she is overjoyed to see her reporter free, but... it feels all wrong to be trading people who are entirely innocent for, you know, a convicted criminal, an assassin, but, you know, we wanted our man back. paul whelan wanted his freedom, you know, understandably. so i think it puts governments in an impossible position. flanked by relatives of the freed americans, at the white house, president biden gave his reaction. it says a lot about the united states that we work relentlessly to free americans who are unjustly held around the world, but it also says a lot about us that this deal includes the release of russian political prisoners. they stood up for democracy, human rights, their own leaders threw them in prison. the united states helped secure their release as well. america accuses moscow ofjailing us citiz

among several prominent kremlin critics released was vladimir kara—murza, while in return moscow gotsassin and fsb colonel vadim krasikov. the family of evan gershkovich echoed the position of all the relatives, expressing heartfelt thanks that their son was free, saying, "we have waited 491 days for evan's release and it's hard to describe what today feels like. "we can't wait to give him the biggest hug and see his sweet and brave smile up close." so even amid the glare of the world's media, this is also a uniquely private moment for the former prisoners and their families. a homecoming which at times they must have feared might never come. will grant, bbc news, washington. for more, i'm joined by our eastern europe correspondent — sarah rainsford. she has been explaining what will happen to the released prisoners. there's been a lot of focus on the american prisoners who were released, the big names that were mentioned by well in his report, but as part of this massive, unprecedented deal, we have seen some really prominent russian political prisoners being released. there is a ve

and paul whelan, evan gershkovich, alsu kurmasheva, and vladimir kara-murza, three american citizens, one

among several prominent kremlin critics released was vladimir kara—murza, while in return moscow gotsassin and fsb colonel vadim krasikov. the family of evan gershkovich echoed the position of all the relatives, expressing heartfelt thanks that their son was free, saying, "we have waited 491 days for evan's release and it's hard to describe what today feels like. "we can't wait to give him the biggest hug and see his sweet and brave smile up close." so even amid the glare of the world's media, this is also a uniquely private moment for the former prisoners and their families. a homecoming which at times they must have feared might never come. will grant, bbc news, washington. let's speak to our correspondent sarah rainsford who is in berlin. it is fascinating is more details emerge about the people involved in this exchange. you have been hearing about one man who is a kremlin critic and is now in germany. yes. critic and is now in germany. yes, there has — critic and is now in germany. yes, there has been _ critic and is now in germany. yes, there has been a _ critic and is now in g

and that's what launched my campaign for justice for sergei vladimir kara murza, who was just releasedcampaign. we got 35 countries to pass. what's called the magnitsky act, which freezes asked it sets a russian human rights violators and then vladimir was targeted and so it's a long string of heartbreak and tragedy that's led us to today, but we can really celebrate that vladimir is safe. he's free, he's alive, and so are evan gershkovich paul whelan, and all the other is it really is a magnificent moment something to really celebrate in a world where a lot of terrible things are happening. this is one of these moments when we can real smile and feel good about ourselves for a day or two but let me then ask you about a broader question. well, which is the un, you know, the financial work very well. you're still a very successful investor why is it that the sanctions against russia do not seem to have blunted some of putin's ambitions. part of it, i assume is that we do still let himself oil and natural gas, which is inevitable because otherwise it would wipe, prices will go to 200 and

she and prominent putin critic vladimir kara murza, who is a us resident, are all on a flight right now heading to the west as bianna pointed out, karamurza is headed to germany where he will meet his family at alito your point in time, let's get you to the white house right now with cnn's mj lee, mj, obviously a very emotional day. even jake sullivan getting emotional, the national security adviser talking about what these families have endured that's right. and that first photo that you just show it from the oval office really captures what a joyful and emotional mourning that has been at the white house. >> the president was in the oval office with these family members. and once they got the word that these four had been on the tarmac and ankara, that's when the president was able to get on the phone and speak with each of them and then give an opportunity for all of the family members to hear the voices of their loved ones as well as they were now safely out of detention of the president did say in remarks earlier that he very much planned to be at joint base andrews when these for

for the families and friends of evan gershkovich, paul whelan and dissidents like vladimir kara—murzar moscow, the takeaway from all of this will be that hostage diplomacy works, and that means we�*re likely to see more of it. more prisoners here being used as bargaining chips, and more prisoner exchanges like this one may be needed to bring them home. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. at the olympics, an italian woman has withdrawn from her boxing match against her algerian opponent after just 46 seconds after she was hit in the face. the algerian was allowed to compete despite being disqualified from last year�*s women�*s world championships for failing an eligibility test. the olympic organisers have been heavily criticised for allowing the fight to go ahead. here�*s our sports editor dan roan. imane khelif�*s first fight of these games was always going to be hugely controversial, they are doing and allowed to compete in the women�*s boxing competition against italian component wait upon at angela carini despite being disqualified from last year�*s championships for elevated level

vladimir kara— murza and ilya yashin were speaking alongside another dissident, andrei pivovarov, at in germany. mr kara—murza and mr yashin said they considered mr putin a tyrant, a murderer and a war criminal. mr kara—murza said he wouldn't ask for a pardon when he wasn't guilty. meanwhile the kremlin has been giving more details about the russians who returned to moscow as part of the huge prisoner swap, admitting that vadim krasikov — convicted of killing a former chechen rebel in berlin — was an fsb agent who served in its special forces unit. russian british activist vladimir kara—murza hasjust been given a press conference in bonn, germany. translation: it is like a movie on some kind of screen - because some days ago i was sitting in a cell somewhere in siberia. yesterday in the morning, we where in the cell in a prison. and now we are here. so, all of it feels really surreal. first of all, i want to say and speak of my gratitude, it's very symbolic that we are here now in the former capital of... and it's very symbolic because they have returned to life to tell us the tradit

among several prominent kremlin critics released was vladimir kara—murza, while in return moscow gotassassin and fsb colonel vadim krasikov. the family of evan gershkovich echoed the position of all the relatives, expressing heartfelt thanks that their son was free, saying, "we have waited 491 days for evan's release and it's hard to describe what today feels like. "we can't wait to give him the biggest hug and see his sweet and brave smile up close." so even amid the glare of the world's media, this is also a uniquely private moment for the former prisoners and their families. a homecoming which at times they must have feared might never come. times they must have will grant, bbc news, washington. times they must have let's speak to our correspondent sarah rainsford who is in berlin. sarah, you have been following this story since those announcements were made yesterday about the prisoner release. there were scenes of jubilation as we saw there, but is this being seen as more of a window for putin rather than for biden? m0. for putin rather than for biden? no, i think this is _ for

it was vladimir kara murza, of course pulitzer prize winning columnist who has a green card. >> so it was a multi prisoner multi-country, multi government deal we're extremely grateful to president biden administration for the negotiations. >> but as you heard him say, germany, slovenia, poland they, norway, they put people into the trade, lots of other allied gov supporters along the way so it's historic day. we feel for the americans left behind. we know there are still americans in russia in prison and i think one of the things that i know the u.s. government will be working on next is how to take away the incentives from these rogue regimes of snatching american citizens and effectively holding them hostage? >> yes, it's a trade-off to what has been a dramatic shift, i think in policy in this administration in terms of what they're willing to do to try and secure the release of hostages. but obviously vladimir putin, to some one of you has taken advantage of that clearly over the course of the last year or two, i do have to ask, there is a kicker in your story, this amazing story

for the families and friends of evan gershkovich, paul whelan and dissidents like vladimir kara—murzament to celebrate. but keep in mind — for the kremlin, it is mission accomplished. it got what it wanted. it got its agents back. for moscow, the takeaway from all of this will be that hostage diplomacy works, and that means we're likely to see more of it. more prisoners here being used as bargaining chips, and more prisoner exchanges like this one may be needed to bring them home. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. i'v e i've been talking to paul beckett, the assistant editor of wall street journal. he's been telling me he and his colleagues are looking forward to welcoming evan back home and back to the newsroom. smiles ofjoy, tears of relief, exhausted butjubilant. that'sjust exhausted but jubilant. that's just us, exhausted butjubilant. that'sjust us, i can't imagine how evan feels and how his family is feeling as they wait to be reunited when his plane lands. tell they wait to be reunited when his plane lam-— they wait to be reunited when his plane lande— plane lands. tell us as m

understand the power of diplomacy well, among the others, released by russia kremlin critic vladimir kara murza, and the number of associates of alexey navalny, the white house says, he was meant to be part of the deal before his death in a russian prison my russia won the release of eight prisoners held in the west. >> president vladimir putin greeted them thursday in moscow, freedom for convicted assassin, not deem krata gauff, who was jailed in germany, was critical to getting putin to agree to this deal. others included the russians convicted of espionage slovenia, and cybercrimes in the u.s and there's nada bashir joins us now in london. what's, what's the process now then for the americans? because you know, great news that their home absolutely. >> and we saw in that video footage of the three americans returning a bit landing there. i mean, this isn't julius moment of the family members there. they were greeted, of course, by president biden and vice president kamala harris. all smiles at an emotional reunion, of course, for the family members waiting on the tarmac that they were given,

posting on his x account, vladimir kara—murza shared this image of himself, along with ilya yashin and saying there would hold a news conference in bonn shortly. kara—murza, on the right, is a dual russian—uk citizen and prominent opposition politician. yashin, in the centre, and pivovarov are also well—known kremlin critics. the prisoners released by the west include convicted hit man vadim krasikov. a russian agent with the fsb security service, krasikov was serving a life sentence in germany for the murder of a former chechen rebel commander, whom he shot dead in broad daylight in a berlin park in 2019. he was returned to moscow, along with seven other released russian prisoners and two children. at an airbase outside washington, presidentjoe biden and vice president kamala harris greeted the returned americans. the plane carrying the two us journalists, evan gershkovich and alsu kurmasheva, and former marine paul whelan landed late at night. president biden said he was grateful for the diplomatic co—operation that led to the swap. our north america correspondent will grant sent thi

pulitzer prize winning vladimir kara-murza.gratulations, i know this must be a surreal time for you and i want to talk about what it's been like for you, but i want to get first just your reaction to this key bridge taken out and the ukrainian push into the kursk region. >> the last time we spoke shortly before the invasion and my own arrest. and it's good to be back. look, when putin invaded ukraine, the original goal for the kremlin was to kyiv in five days and that's what the russian leadership promised vladimir putin the dictator, he believed it and that's what happens when you're in power a quarter of a century and live in your own propaganda bubble and believe your own lies. he believed he would take kyiv in five days, not five months, not in two and a half years, we're seeing ukrainian troops on our own territory in russia and the first time ukrainian troops on russian territory, real recognized russian territory since germany invaded in world war ii. and it's a public humiliation for putin. and we see the last couple of

the opposition people who are being, we think release people like vladimir kara murza, who is renownedtorian and very, very well known in russia. these were people who are really important i think so for the russia of the future, i would argue as well. >> you mentioned vladimir kara murza and he his wife, evgenia, as you know has spoken out on his behalf when he was sentenced and put into a penal colony. and sheep, she was she was left with three young children you know david, i've spoken to her many times the last time. she spoke. well, actually, she didn't. that's the point of this to her husband from the penal colony was in february, as i said, they have three children and i just want to play what she told me in february, david, about that conversation with her husband in a penal colony, who is very ill vladimir was allowed 115 minute phone call with the kids and that was the first phone call in over half a year? >> we have three kids. divide 15 by three. that means three minutes five minutes each. and i was literally standing there with a timer because i couldn't let any of our kid

whelan, russian american journalist alsu kurmasheva, also dissident and us permanent resident, vladimir kara-murza, they were flown from russia to ankara, turkey, where the exchange took place, like the deal itself. that exchange involved several different planes from the u.s. germany, poland, slovenia, norway, and russia here is gershkovich should have photo the white house put out with kurmasheva and whelan speaking with president biden. and here they are on the plane. that's now just a short way out from andrew's speaking about what went into freeing them, the normally buttoned down national security adviser, jake sullivan well, he got choked up i spent a lot of time with the families of evan and paul and all sue. >> and most of the time, as you can imagine, those are tough conversations but not today. today excuse me today was very good day and we're going to build on it i'm drawing inspiration and can continued courage from it for all of those who were held hostage or wrongfully detained around the world sullivan was deeply involved in those negotiations. the dark flip side of the deal, the p

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for the families and friends of evan gershkovich, paul whelan and dissidents like vladimir kara—murzathis is a moment to celebrate. but keep in mind — for the kremlin, it is mission accomplished. it got what it wanted. i think it was very difficult - for germany to agree to accept the idea that they would have to return a convicted assassin to russia in any circumstances. joining me tonight are nathalie tocci, director of the istituto affari internazionali in rome and american journalist brian stelter. i think it is the institute of national affairs. i think it is the institute of nationalaffairs. give i think it is the institute of national affairs. give her her proper title. first — the latest headlines. the largest prisoner swap between russia and the us since the cold war has taken place in ankara. 16 people were freed from russian and belarusianjails, including the wall streetjournal reporter evan gershkovich. in exchange, eight people were freed by the west. two children were also sent back to russia, both belonged to couple jailed in slovenia. the bbc has defended its decision

i was so disappointed when vladimir kara- murza went back to russia . i thought he was going to die in jail just like my friend alex -- when i began to hear from mutual contacts that the family was going to the white house in the morning, it was elation. not just because of those people but it was an incredibly complex deal that a lot of good people got out of jail today and a lot of bad people had to go back to russia. we are much better off with all the americans liberated and the russians liberated too. >> what about the americans that are still there. what is this like for their families. should they feel hope or hopeless? >> i know one of them personally. mark vogel. he was a teacher when i was the ambassador. he was my son's history teacher. he is a fantastic guy. fantastic teacher. one of the best i have ever had the privilege of knowing. it is the olympics time now. last time i saw him, we were in uncle sam's bar at the embassy when the united states hockey team beat russia. it is tragic for the family. they had hopes. they were on a roller coas

resident biden met with vladimir kara-murza and his family, officials have confirmed to nbc news.ow night at 10:00 p.m. eastern with my first interview withfive since he was released from that russian prison. he will join me, along with the activist. >>> another quick note before we go, if you scan this qr code on your screen, it will tell you more about an upcoming, an msnbc special event on saturday, september 7th. if you are in the new york area, i hope you will join with me in my colleagues in brooklyn, on msnbc live, democracy 2024. this is the first of its kind and it will offer perspectives from your favorite host on election day in a pivotal moment for our democracy. we hope to see you there. that is tonight's last word. >>> tonight, the candidates talk economics. vice president harris touts cheaper prescription drugs under president biden, while donald trump offers another unhinged speech on inflation. then, tr

. >> i want to bring in a friend, newly freed russian dissident vladimir kara-murza. he's the founder and ceo of hermitage capitol management and the largest foreign investor in russia until 2005. he wrote the book, freezing order. a true story of money laundering, murder, and surviving the vladimir putin's wrath. i am privileged to be with you tonight because we got to see several americans who were freed from the vladimir putin's wrath. how do you feel tonight? >> it was very emotional. it's an emotional day and emotional evening. i watched those images as evan gershkovich, paul whelan, and alsu kurmasheva got off the airplane and saw their families. i know the feeling because of been intimately involved in the duress of another family, the family of vladimir kara-murza. valletta merck, his family lives in the united states. is a birders citizen and he will be on the tarmac in germany meeting the german chancellor along with a number of other russian prisoners, russian dissidents, who left russia. the uncertainty that leads to one of these moments, the distress that

vladimir kara-murza.he largest foreign investor in russia until 2005. he also wrote the book freezing order. a true story of money laundering. bill, i'm privileged to be with you tonight. because we got to see several americans who were freed from putin's wrath. how do you feel? >> it has been a very emotional day and evening. i watched those images as they got off the plane and touched the ground and saw their families and i know the feeling. because i have been intimately involved in the duress of another family. vladimir kara-murza. he will be on the tarmac in germany meeting the german chancellor along with a number of other russian prisoners who left russia. the uncertainty that leads up to these moments, the distress that the family experiences, it is indescribable what everyone goes through. and to have it all resolved. it is an emotional time for everyone involved. i would imagine anyone looking at these images feel those emotions. >> you begged your friend vladimir not to return to russia. as soo