Biden Says He’s Not Giving up on US Teacher Who’s Still Imprisoned in Russia

President Joe Biden outside the White House in Washington on Aug. 2, 2024. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)

President Joe Biden on Aug. 2 said he is not giving up on securing the release of Marc Fogel, an American schoolteacher who is still imprisoned in Russia after not being included in a prisoner exchange finalized this week.

“We’re not giving up on that,” the president told reporters outside the White House in Washington.

Asked what he can do, Biden added, “Do you want me to tell you ahead of time so he doesn’t get out?”

Fogel, 63, is serving a 14-year prison sentence after being found with marijuana in Russia in 2021.

Reporter Evan Gershkovich, journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, and Marine veteran Paul Whelan were among the U.S. prisoners secured in a multicountry swap hammered out by officials with the United States and other countries this week, but Fogel was not one of them.

“Today, Marc was left behind again,” relatives of Fogel said in a statement to news outlets. “Marc has been unjustly detained for far too long and must be prioritized in any swap negotiations with Russia, regardless of his level of notoriety or celebrity.”

Fogel’s family said he’s suffering from unspecified severe health issues.

“We sincerely hope that this is not our last opportunity to bring him home and save him from potentially dying in a Russian prison,” they said.

Members of both parties celebrated the release of the Americans and other prisoners, although some lamented how criminals were released back to Russia, which is headed by President Vladimir Putin, in the exchange.

“The release of innocent Americans and Russian political prisoners from wrongful detention is encouraging news,“ House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a joint statement, adding later that ”we recognize that trading hardened Russian criminals for innocent Americans does little to discourage Putin’s reprehensible behavior.”

Several lawmakers highlighted the continued detention of Fogel.

“While we celebrate the return of folks unfairly detained in Russia, we must not forget about Marc Fogel, a teacher from Oakmont, PA, who has been imprisoned in Russia for three years too long now,” Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.) said in a statement.

“I am disappointed to hear that Butler County native Marc Fogel was not a part of the prisoner swap today between the United States and Russia,” added Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.).

Former prisoners released by Russia, US journalist Evan Gershkovich (R), former US marine Paul Whelan (C), and US-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva (L) stand after landing at Joint Base San Antonio-Kelly Field, Texas, on Aug. 2, 2024. (Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images)

Other Americans remain behind bars in Russia, including U.S. soldier Gordon Black and musician Travis Leake.

Fogel was previously left out of a 2022 swap that featured women’s basketball player Brittney Griner, also convicted on drug charges, exchanged for Russian gun dealer Viktor Bout.

“We absolutely wanted Marc to be included, but it just wasn’t going to happen,” a senior official with the Biden administration told reporters on a call. “Just like when we got Brittney out, we tried very hard for both Paul and Marc, and we just couldn’t get the Russians there. In this case, we could get Paul; we couldn’t get Marc.”

Vedant Patel, a spokesman for the State Department, said negotiators will keep engaging with Russian counterparts with regards to Fogel and others.

“There continue to be American citizens detained in legal systems around the world—not, of course, just in Russia,“ Patel said. ”This is a responsibility that we take seriously. We are monitoring those cases and assessing additional ways that we can engage.”