Stephen James Hubbard was around 74 years old, a retired American from Michigan, once living happily with his Ukrainian lover in Cyprus, when he later found himself in trouble with the Russian government.
asserted
himself → live → government
In 2021, according to a New York Times account of his retelling, he moved to the east Ukrainian city of Izium one year prior to the Russian invasion of the Donbass.
uncertain
he → accord → Donbass
He and his girlfriend, named Inna, then broke up.
asserted
He → name → ?
She returned to Cyprus.
asserted
She → return → Cyprus
He stayed in Izuium and was arrested by the Russian military in April 2022, charged with fighting as a mercenary.
asserted
He → stay → mercenary
He was sentenced to roughly seven years in jail in October 2024.
asserted
He → sentence → October
He spent the last two years of his life in a Russian penal county when he could have been home with his family.
uncertain
he → spend → family
But lucky for Hubbard, a few years later, the Russians opted to let him go.
asserted
him → opt → Hubbard
What did Russia get out of the exchange?
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Russia → get → exchange
What can be hoped for out of the release of an elderly American citizen most of us never knew was in prison, until only a few weeks ago.
asserted
most → hop → prison
Hubbard came home last week thanks, in part, to the efforts of pro-bono Russian and American lawyers working side by side to free him.
asserted
Hubbard → come → him
U.S. law firm Boies Schiller Flexner and Russian law firm EPAM Law both issued statements on Oct. 21 confirming their work on Hubbard’s release.
asserted
firm → issue → release
EPAM specifically reports that its lawyers located Hubbard, helped arrange humanitarian assistance and represented him in Russian courts, including a parole application.
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lawyers → report → application
Some say it was Hubbard’s religious affiliation that helped.
asserted
that → say → ?
He was Eastern Orthodox Christian, according to his son in a statement posted by EPAM.
uncertain
He → accord → EPAM
(RELATED: Canada Is Building A Trade Network Around America.
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Canada → relate → America
Its Namesake Railroad Is Ready To Cash In.)
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Railroad → cash → ?
“It moves me deeply that the father who introduced me to Russian Orthodoxy has now been released through an act of mercy involving Russia,” wrote his son Joseph Coleman.
asserted
son → move → Russia
It comes from a spiritual conviction, personal experience, and friendships across borders,” he said.
asserted
he → come → borders
Putin released Hubbard without getting a Russian prisoner in return.
asserted
Putin → release → return
It is unclear of this religious affiliation had anything to do with Putin’s sudden feeling of mercy, but according to the New York Times, Coleman, who is a Greek Orthodox priest, wrote a long letter to Putin in September, making a point of his Orthodox faith, similar to Russian Orthodox, and pleading for his father’s release.
uncertain
who → have → release
“We were glad to contribute to a broader effort that brought Stephen Hubbard home,” said Dmitry Afanasiev, co-founder of EPAM.
asserted
Afanasiev → contribute → EPAM
“His release is a small but meaningful step toward peace and cooperation, and we hope it encourages further progress.
asserted
it → hope → progress
The case required sustained work by a large team of lawyers from both sides.
asserted
case → require → sides
EPAM lawyers helped locate Hubbard in a Russian prison after contact with his family had been lost, assisted with humanitarian and health-related needs, helped restore communication with relatives, and late represented him through the Russian legal process, including the pardon process.
“Those efforts were one part of a wider initiative involving the U.S. and Russian governments, and it was their representatives that ultimately made the release possible,” Afanasiev said.
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Afanasiev → help → governments
Lawyers cannot secure a political prisoner pardon or a release by themselves.
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Lawyers → secure → themselves
That takes political will and diplomacy.
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That → take → will
Hubbard’s return came through the combined effort of people working in different roles, on both sides in spite of NATO hawks in Europe, the U.K., and on Capitol Hill.
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return → come → Hill
According to an Oct. 30 Reuters report, citing unnamed sources, Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby has asked several NATO countries to tone down their rhetoric regarding the threat posed by Russia, especially the Baltic states, which are forever insisting the Russians are coming.
uncertain
Russians → accord → Russia
I’m going to say a mini-reset is being tested.
asserted
reset → go → ?
Of course, the Russia critics are right that one humanitarian gesture does not resolve the war in Ukraine.
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gesture → resolve → Ukraine
But American diplomacy should be judged in part by whether it can win tangible results: Americans returned to their families, communication restored and channels kept open for further negotiations.
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channels → judge → negotiations
That approach fits an America First policy when it serves clear U.S. interests, even if allies in the U.K. and European Union hem and haw about it; or Reagan-era national security hawks think it’s appeasement.
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it → fit → it
Maintaining contact with a rival is not an endorsement of its government.
asserted
Maintaining → maintain → government
In this case, it was a way to protect Americans.
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it → protect → Americans
It was a test as to whether limited agreements are possible given the four year war with Ukraine – a war mostly everyone sees as a West vs Russia proxy war at this point.
asserted
everyone → give → point
Hubbard’s release therefore raises an important question: Was this simply a humanitarian gesture to Trump, or an early indication that Moscow sees value in improving relations with Washington?
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Moscow → raise → Washington
On Oct. 9, Trump announced a Russian diesel agreement, accompanied by limited sanctions relief.
asserted
Trump → announce → relief
Days later, on Oct. 21, Putin releases Hubbard, and Moscow indicates it isprepared to resume trilateral Ukraine peace talks with the U.S.
asserted
it → release → U.S.
Recently, on Oct. 31, Secretary of State Marco Rubio cautioned that the United States was not close to a negotiated settlement despite all the noise that Trump was embracing Putin — a back-to-2016 narrative.
asserted
Trump → caution → Putin
…and 14 more, not listed.
The Aporia
