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Prisoner exchange between US and Russia takes place in Abu Dhabi

Prisoner exchange between US and Russia takes place in Abu Dhabi

The National10-04-2025

Russia and the US have exchanged prisoners in a UAE-mediated swap that happened in Abu Dhabi on Thursday morning, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The exchange included one US citizen and one Russian citizen, state news agency Wam reported. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted on X saying that Ksenia Karelina, an American citizen, had been release after being "wrongfully detained by Russia" for more than a year. In February, the Trump administration brought home Marc Fogel, a US schoolteacher who had been held in Russia for more than three years on drug charges. His release was part of a prisoner exchange with Moscow. The UAE previous mediated an exchange on March 19 which resulted in the release of 175 Russians and 175 Ukrainians.

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