Moscow has released ex-US Marine Robert Gilman, who had been incarcerated in Russia since 2022, US President Donald Trump has confirmed. The move was made “very much on a humanitarian basis,” Trump said, adding that Moscow did not ask for anyone in return.
The impending release of Gilman was first reported earlier on Tuesday by US media. Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev, a key figure in negotiations with Washington, apparently confirmed the reports by reposting a piece by Reuters on social media.
“After my discussions with President Vladimir Putin, Russia has agreed to release him, very much on a humanitarian basis. We appreciate this decision, and the fact that Russia asked for no one in return – No exchange took place,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also commented on the release of Gilman, expressing his gratitude to Russia in a post on X for “allowing him to receive the necessary medical treatment here in the United States.”
Gilman has already been flown out of Russia on a State Department plane after reportedly being granted a presidential pardon over his deteriorating mental health.
The 32-year-old US national was detained in Russia in early 2022 after drunkenly assaulting a police officer while traveling through the country by train. Gilman, who served with the Marine Corps for a year between 2019 and 2020, is the son of a Russian immigrant to the US.
Gilman was initially sentenced to 4.5 years for the assault, with the term reduced to 3.5 years by a higher court. However, the US national reportedly grew increasingly violent while in a penal colony, and was handed an additional seven years of incarceration in 2024 over repeated assaults on jail officials. Last month, Gilman was transferred from the colony to a civilian psychiatric ward reportedly in a catatonic-like state described as a “dissociative stupor.”
Gilman is now slated to be transferred to a hospital in Texas for medical evaluation and treatment, AP reported, citing sources.
The US is said to have sought Gilman’s release for some time, with the issue raised during a recent meeting between Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.