It’s good that Fogel is returning, and the gesture of his release is an act of good faith between the Russian government of Vladimir Putin and the U.S. government of Donald Trump.
However, that said, Marc Fogel was not arrested and detained for some arbitrary reason. The American teacher was arrested, tried and convicted for taking marijuana into Russia. The Russian government doesn’t recognize medicinal marijuana, and they do not play around with illegal drugs or classified narcotics. It’s a big issue and considered a serious crime with severe penalties.

President Trump on Tuesday secured the release of an American imprisoned in Russia as part of a deal with the Kremlin negotiated by Mr. Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff. Mr Witkoff flew to Moscow Sunday for discussions with Russian officials.
New York Times – […] Mike Waltz, Mr. Trump’s national security adviser, said in a statement that Mr. Witkoff, at the president’s direction, had brought Mr. Fogel out of Russia on his plane as part of an exchange. But he did not provide any details about whether the United States or an ally had released someone in return or what other steps the administration had taken to win Mr. Fogel’s release.
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