Two high-ranking Republican leadership officials on the Hill issued a joint statement on the country's prisoner swap with Russia, voicing concerns about how costly the move may actually be, reported The Hill.
"The release of innocent Americans and Russian political prisoners from wrongful detention is encouraging news," Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in a joint statement Thursday.
The pair said they will continue to fight for all Americans to be released.
The prisoner swap, which included 24 prisoners in total exchanged, marked the largest since the Cold War and involved seven countries.
"Their unjust captivity will be an enduring reminder of the Russian government's longstanding fear of free people and the free press," the statement continued, referring to Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, who had been imprisoned on espionage charges since March 2023.
The pair said the continued imprisonment of American citizens and innocent Russians "is a damning indictment of [Russian President] Vladimir Putin's hostility to the United States and his disdain for the rule of law."
They also voiced their concerns about what the swap means for future diplomacy.
"Without serious action to deter further hostage-taking by Russia, Iran, and other states hostile to the United States, the cost of hostage diplomacy will continue to rise. As we renew our call for the return of all persons wrongfully detained by the Kremlin, we recognize that trading hardened Russian criminals for innocent Americans does little to discourage Putin's reprehensible behavior," they wrote.
Former President Donald Trump questioned the swap, asking whether the United States had paid for the release of Americans.
"So when are they going to release the details of the prisoner swap with Russia?" he asked in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social. "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)?
"Are we releasing murderers, killers, or thugs? Just curious because we never make good deals, at anything, but especially hostage swaps," Trump added.
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