### American Sentenced to Nearly 7 Years in Russian Prison for Mercenary Activities

In a closed trial on Monday, a Russian court sentenced 72-year-old American Stephen Hubbard to six years and 10 months in a general-security prison for allegedly participating as a mercenary in the Ukrainian conflict. Prosecutors claimed that Hubbard, a Michigan native, enlisted with the Ukrainian military following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and continued fighting until his capture two months later.

Hubbard’s case is particularly notable as he is the first American known to be convicted on such charges in the ongoing conflict. Although the potential sentence for the charges was up to 15 years, prosecutors took Hubbard's age and his admission of guilt into account, seeking a lesser sentence compared to the maximum-security seven-year term they initially requested.

In another case on the same day, American Robert Gilman received a seven-year and one-month sentence from a court in Voronezh. Gilman had been previously serving a 3½-year sentence for causing a disturbance while intoxicated on a train and assaulting a police officer. Additional charges were added after he assaulted a prison inspector and an official from the Investigative Committee during a cell check last year.

Arrests of U.S. citizens in Russia have seen a rise in recent years, sparking concerns that Russian authorities may be detaining them as leverage to facilitate the return of Russians convicted of crimes in the U.S. and Europe. This possibility was underscored by the large-scale prisoner exchange between the U.S. and Russia in August of the previous year, which involved 24 individuals and required multi-nation negotiations and compromises. Despite this exchange, several American nationals remain imprisoned in Russia.

These incidents highlight the growing tensions and complexities surrounding the imprisonment of foreign nationals amid the ongoing geopolitical strife between the U.S. and Russia.