Provo, Utah — Today, Representative John Curtis (R-UT), made the following statement after the release of WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich and former Marine Paul Whelan from Russian prisons as part of a prisoner-swap:

“I am relieved to see Americans and others wrongly detained by Russia finally returning to their families. Unfortunately, Putin and other authoritarian leaders frequently engage in hostage diplomacy, detaining innocent people to leverage exchanges for criminals, assassins, or sanctions relief. These reprehensible tactics deserve universal condemnation and underscore the profound differences between our nations.”

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