In what has been called the largest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the end of the Cold War, 32-year-old Mr. Gershkovich was one of 16 inmates exchanged for eight Russian convicts.
Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian-American journalist, and Paul Whelan, a former US marine, were also released during the swap at an airstrip in Turkey.
Mr. Gershkovich, Ms. Kurmasheva, and Mr. Whelan emerged from the jet to applause from onlookers on the tarmac following their touchdown at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.
US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris welcomed the three, and then they each gave each other an embrace.
They stayed on the tarmac for pictures and talks, and in an hour they, along with Mr. Biden’s and Ms. Harris’s motorcades, left the air base.
“Their horrific ordeal is over,” Mr. Biden said in a statement prior to their return, applauding their release.
He hailed the role played by America’s friends, particularly Germany and Slovenia, and praised the release of Mr. Whelan, Mr. Gershkovich, Ms. Kurmasheva, and well-known Kremlin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza.
