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The United States and Russia have conducted a prisoner swap that has freed a Russian-US citizen who was sentenced to 12 years in a Russian penal colony after making a small donation to a US-based nonprofit supporting Ukraine.

Some shit you should know before you read: Back in February 2024, Ksenia Karelina, a dual Russian-US citizen and ballet dancer, was arrested while visiting her family in Yekaterinburg, Russia. Her arrest stemmed from a $52 donation she made in 2022 to “Razom for Ukraine,” a New York-based nonprofit organization providing humanitarian aid to Ukrainians affected by the war. Russian authorities accused her of committing treason, alleging that the donation directly supported activities hostile to the Russian state. Under Russian law, treason can include providing financial or other assistance to foreign organizations deemed to undermine national security, even indirectly. According to state media, Russian security services traced the donation through financial monitoring systems and claimed it violated laws prohibiting support for foreign entities engaged in actions against Russia. Although Karelina admitted to making the donation, her legal team argued she had no intent to aid any anti-Russian efforts and believed she was exercising her rights as a US citizen.

What’s going on now: In an announcement, the US confirmed the release of Ksenia Karelina as part of a high-level prisoner swap with Russia, brokered through secret negotiations involving the CIA and Russia’s intelligence services. The exchange took place in Abu Dhabi, with mediation from the United Arab Emirates. CIA Director John Ratcliffe, who was directly involved in the talks, praised the effort, stating, “President Trump brought home another wrongfully detained American from Russia. I’m proud of the CIA officers who worked tirelessly to support this effort, and we appreciate the Government of UAE for enabling the exchange.”

In exchange for Karelina, the US released Arthur (Artur) Petrov, a German-Russian dual national arrested in Cyprus in 2023 and extradited to the US. The DOJ accused him of conspiring to smuggle sensitive American-made microelectronics to Russia for use in military production, including weapons deployed in the ongoing war in Ukraine. US officials allege that he was part of a procurement network supplying Russia’s military-industrial complex with technology banned under US sanctions.

While Karelina has not yet issued a public statement, her fiancé Chris van Heerden called her release a miracle. In a statement to CBS, he said, “She has done nothing wrong. She made a small donation out of compassion—she thought she was helping people.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio also confirmed her release on X, saying, “American Ksenia Karelina is on a plane back home to the United States. She was wrongfully detained by Russia for over a year and President Trump secured her release.”