Trump Demands Transparency on U.S.-Russia Prisoner Swap Details

[Social Media]

 

Former President Donald Trump has called for more transparency regarding the recent high-profile prisoner swap between the United States and Russia, which resulted in the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan from Russian custody. In a post on Truth Social, Trump highlighted his own track record with prisoner exchanges and raised concerns about the terms of the current deal.

 

Trump questioned the specifics of the exchange, asking, "So when are they going to release the details of the prisoner swap with Russia? How many people do we get versus them? Are we also paying them cash? Are they giving us cash (Please withdraw that question, because I’m sure the answer is NO)?" He further speculated about the nature of those being released, suggesting that the U.S. might be releasing "murderers, killers, or thugs," and criticized the U.S. government for its history of making poor deals, particularly in hostage swaps.

 

The former president expressed concerns about the implications of potentially giving cash to an opposing country, calling it a “bad precedent for the future.” He accused Russia of extorting the United States, referencing the complexity of the trade and suggesting it was designed to obscure the unfavorable terms for the U.S. "They are extorting the United States of America. They’re calling the trade ‘complex’ – That’s so nobody can figure out how bad it is!" Trump wrote.

 

National security adviser Jake Sullivan responded to these claims during a White House briefing, asserting that no money was exchanged and no sanctions were loosened as part of the deal. Sullivan's statement aimed to dispel any rumors or misconceptions about the terms of the prisoner swap.

 

President Joe Biden announced on Thursday that Gershkovich and Whelan, along with Alsu Kurmasheva and Vladimir Kara-Murza, were released as part of the largest prisoner exchange with Russia since the Cold War. The deal also saw the release of five Germans and seven Russian citizens who had been held as political prisoners. This historic exchange underscores the ongoing efforts and complexities involved in diplomatic negotiations between the two nations.

 

Trump, who has often criticized Biden's handling of American detainees in Russia, had previously predicted that Biden would struggle to secure the release of Gershkovich, who had been detained in Russia for more than a year. When asked about Trump’s suggestion that he could have brought the detainees home without making any concessions, Biden retorted, "Why didn’t he do it when he was president?"

This exchange highlights the ongoing political tension and debate surrounding the handling of international prisoner swaps, the strategies employed by different administrations, and the broader implications for U.S. foreign policy and national security.

 

Credit: Hill  2024-08-03

 

 

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[Tug]

Translation trump is looking for dirt and distraction anything to keep attention away from his latest debacles and heaven forbid any discussion of policy.

[Chomper Higgot]

Trump demanding transparency is a joke right?

[Red Forever]

On Trump's watch how many Taliban did he free in exchange for US prisoners?

[mushroomdave]

I guess someone talking to/dealing with his bf Putin has made his bronzer run a bit more than usual !!!!

 

[candide]

5 hours ago, Red Forever said:

On Trump's watch how many Taliban did he free in exchange for US prisoners?

5,000?

[CallumWK]

20 hours ago, Tug said:

Translation trump is looking for dirt

 

And I'm sure he doesn't have to dig deep

[Roo Island]

Hopefully he'll be gone shortly.

[Skeptic7]

Trump is in no position to "demand" anything. 

[Jingthing]

I demand transparency about Trump's comb over not to mention ear-gate.

[Skipalongcassidy]

57 minutes ago, Skeptic7 said:

Trump is in no position to "demand" anything. 

Why not... you do it all the time... 

[BKKKevin]

Did we receive any transparency in any of his exchanges?...

 

• In November 2019, the Trump administration secured the release of American Kevin King and Australian Timothy Weeks, who were being held by the Taliban, in exchange for the release of three senior Taliban leaders being held in jails in Afghanistan.
• In December 2019, the U.S. did a prisoner exchange with Iran, freeing Xiyue Wang, a graduate student at Princeton University who was serving a 10-year sentence in Iran on espionage charges. To secure Wang’s release, the U.S. freed Masoud Soleimani, an Iranian scientist convicted of export violations.
• In July 2020, the Trump administration secured the release of Michael White, a Marine veteran jailed in Iran on charges of insulting the country’s supreme leader, in exchange for the release of a dermatologist convicted on export violations.
• In October 2020, a deputy assistant to Trump helped broker a deal to free two Americans being held hostage by Iranian-backed militants in Yemen in exchange for the release of about 250 Houthi rebels being held in Oman.

[Hanaguma]

On 8/3/2024 at 6:01 AM, Tug said:

Translation trump is looking for dirt and distraction anything to keep attention away from his latest debacles and heaven forbid any discussion of policy.

Translation; Putin wants Harris to win the election, so he pulled the trigger on this deal to give her and Biden some credibility.  

 

I mean, seriously. Can you imagine Kamala across the table from Putin, or Xi Jin Ping? They would be hard pressed to contain their laughter.

[HappyExpat57]

25 minutes ago, Hanaguma said:

Translation; Putin wants Harris to win the election, so he pulled the trigger on this deal to give her and Biden some credibility.  

 

I mean, seriously. Can you imagine Kamala across the table from Putin, or Xi Jin Ping? They would be hard pressed to contain their laughter.

I don't think that's the case at all. The former prez/convicted felon/serial sex offender was one of his most useful idiots he could have had in the oval office. Harris will be wanting to make a bold statement about the US stance against Russia quick, fast, and in a hurry. As well, if Putin thought Harris was not going to win the election, he would have held off the swap, waiting for more favorable conditions from his bestie.

 

A side note:

To all the bickering, childish people making downright rude and counterproductive posts - take note how Hanaguma and I have just had a discussion without slandering or mud flinging. I'm pretty much staying out of these chats any more cuz no real thought goes into the ignorant back and forth. I look forward to Hanaguma's reply (if he so chooses). Please grow the eff up, it will make for a better future on the forum.

[thaipo7]

16 hours ago, Red Forever said:

On Trump's watch how many Taliban did he free in exchange for US prisoners?

You seem to know.  Tell us.  You Leftist are always short on facts.  I provide receipts.

[thaipo7]

2 hours ago, Jingthing said:

I demand transparency about Trump's comb over not to mention ear-gate.

What are you?  Part of no-brain gate?

[Hanaguma]

3 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

I don't think that's the case at all. The former prez/convicted felon/serial sex offender was one of his most useful idiots he could have had in the oval office. Harris will be wanting to make a bold statement about the US stance against Russia quick, fast, and in a hurry. As well, if Putin thought Harris was not going to win the election, he would have held off the swap, waiting for more favorable conditions from his bestie.

 

A side note:

To all the bickering, childish people making downright rude and counterproductive posts - take note how Hanaguma and I have just had a discussion without slandering or mud flinging. I'm pretty much staying out of these chats any more cuz no real thought goes into the ignorant back and forth. I look forward to Hanaguma's reply (if he so chooses). Please grow the eff up, it will make for a better future on the forum.

I disagree, as you might expect. I recall it was the Democrats, with Hillary as Sec State, that showed off the "reset button" with regards to Russo/American relations.   Putin would far rather negotiate with Harris than Trump, Russia tends to do its dirty business when Democrats are in office.

 

And yeah, it IS possible to disagree without being disagreeable.  Seems a lot of folks just like to vent their bile and have no other outlet than the safe anonymity of this forum.  

 

OR

 

If you want to sling mud, at least be clever or original.  Repeating the same trite accusations and phrases is a waste of time.  At least provide a modicum of entertainment!

[thaipo7]

Biden Admin's John Kirby Puts a Damper on Prisoner Exchange Victory Lap: 'Nobody's Delighted'

 

Just as I expected, the failed Biden Administration failed again.  Over 50 years of Biden being on the wrong side of history.  How could anyone expect other than this?  It is always anything for the Party.  If it looks like it may help the Party - just do it.  Harm caused to the US as a whole means nothing.  Party must win at all costs.  I don't trust Kirby either.  Never heard of him as a top military person.

 

Not even when playing chess would Thursday’s prisoner exchange between the United States and Russia have been a choice anyone looking to actually win would consider. And yet President Joe Biden not only considered it, he went through with it.  Biden came away from the trade with three pawns from Putin. The Russian president received knights, rooks, bishops and one murderer for them. The trade is so outrageously inept and lopsided it evokes memories of Biden’s botched Afghanistan withdrawal at the beginning of his term.  It’s not a strategy to be celebrated by anyone but Putin. John Kirby, the White House’s national communications adviser, couldn’t help but recognize this in an interview with Fox News host Bret Baier.  Baier quoted a Newsweek article that declared, “Russia’s exchange of political prisoners for spies with the West marks the largest swap of its kind since the end of the Cold War, and is being hailed as a ‘success’ for Vladimir Putin.  “The U.S. State Department confirmed on Thursday that Russia was handed eight spies and agents, including political assassin Vadim Krasikov, who was convicted in Germany over a 2019 killing in Berlin.”

 

“Yeah, look — nobody’s delighted or doing backflips over here because Mr. Krasikov is now a free man,” Kirby admitted. “That’s what negotions are all about. They require tough decisions, tough calls. The president was willing to make that tough call in order to get these — all of these individuals, not just the Americans — all of them, released.”  In his rationale, Kirby acknowledged the participation of U.S. allies, incuding Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, who participated in the exchange by agreeing to release Krasikov. The entire group joined Biden in expanding Russia’s power in the world and diminishing their own.  Kirby justified this extraordinarily poor judgment by projecting that everyone agrees that trading innocent lives for criminal lives is the right thing to do. “I think we can all agree that it is better to have innocent people no longer rotting in Russian prisons for the rest of their lives. And, I think, on balance, that’s what it came down to.”  That’s a huge leap Kirby made, because plenty of Americans disagree. The havoc that those Russian criminals can wreak on many more American and European lives is significant.  Plus, critics argue that the magnitude of unfairness in the exchange serves to embolden Putin to engage in more of the same. Swapping Russian criminals for not even a full handful of innocent Americans gains our nation nothing, but offers to lose us a ton.  Former Trump National Security Advisor John Bolton is one of these critics. A post on social media platform X of an interview that he did with Kaitlan Collins on CNN shows just how terrible this swap actually was.  “It’s a totally unfair, and really immoral swap of innocent Americans for Russian criminals,” Bolton said.

[ElwoodP]

Personal attack and replies removed, please don't quote abusive posts as your reply gets removed along with the abuse.

[bendejo]

Trump Demands Transparency on U.S.-Russia Prisoner Swap Details

 

. . . and people in hell demand ice water.

 

Does the release signal that Putin is displeased with his Donny?

 

[candide]

Trump is angry!

Putin never fails to show his bitch that he's the master! 😁

[Skeptic7]

7 hours ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

Why not... you do it all the time... 

🐂 💩

I don't demand anything. Give me one example. Put up or zip it Skip. 

[Tug]

10 hours ago, Hanaguma said:

Translation; Putin wants Harris to win the election, so he pulled the trigger on this deal to give her and Biden some credibility.  

 

I mean, seriously. Can you imagine Kamala across the table from Putin, or Xi Jin Ping? They would be hard pressed to contain their laughter.

As apposed to his greatest asset are you kidding?Trump is a putin fan boy he will abandon Ukraine faster than you can say big Mack with cheese the guy who says Putin’s invasion is genius the guy who says do what you will with nato members!!versus a district attorney an attorney general a senator a vice president then in your senaro a president of the United States that supports NATO you gotta be kidding!she would be negotiating with the full weight of the United States behind her and the sanity to listen to council…….naa I suspect the apposition would have a tough time.Tho I do suspect they will fall into the masoginy trap just like you!

[bendejo]

11 hours ago, candide said:

Trump is angry!

Putin never fails to show his bitch that he's the master! 😁

 

As James Carville put it "you know there's ketchup bottles flying down there!"