Donald Trump’s Message for Putin Draws Rebuke From Critics

Following a prisoner swap this week between the United States and Russia, former President Donald Trump’s message for Russian President Vladimir Putin at a campaign rally on Saturday sparked criticism from people on social media.

On Thursday, President Joe Biden announced that his administration secured the release of three Americans and one U.S. resident, Vladimir Kara-Murza, as part of a prisoner swap with Moscow. The U.S. and some of its allies agreed to exchange eight Russian detainees in return for Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan and Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, along with a number of Russian dissidents held in Russian prisons. Several German nationals were also released as part of the deal.

In return, Russia welcomed back several Russian nationals who have been convicted of crimes including espionage, fraud and involvement in the shooting death of a Georgian commander, according to the Associated Press.

“I will not stop working until every American wrongfully detained or held hostage around the world is reunited with their family. My Administration has now brought home over 70 such Americans, many of whom were in captivity since before I took office,” Biden wrote in the statement on Thursday.

On Saturday, Trump traveled to a campaign rally at the Georgia State University Convocation Center in Atlanta. During the rally, Trump, the GOP’s 2024 presidential nominee, spoke about the prisoner exchange as he congratulated the Russian leader.

“By the way I would like to congratulate Vladimir Putin for having made yet another great deal. Did you see the deal we made?” Trump asked.

Newsweek has reached out to the White House and Trump’s campaign via email for comment.

Since Trump’s remarks, some users have taken to X, formerly Twitter, to criticize the former president for his message to Putin.

X account Kamala’s Wins, an online community supporting Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, wrote, “In a horrifying moment, Donald Trump congratulates Vladimir Putin. Trump has long sided with Russia and Putin, but congratulating him at a campaign rally is as anti-American and repulsive as it gets. Retweet so all Americans see this.”

This comes as Trump was expected to face off against Biden in this year’s election, but is now expected to face Harris, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, since Biden stepped down from the race on July 21 and endorsed his vice president.

Meanwhile, when he was president, Trump’s reported links with Putin were subject to scrutiny. He previously praised Putin as “smart” and boasted about his good relations with the Russian leader, even claiming without providing details that he could end the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war that was started by Putin in February 2022 within “24 hours” if he’s reelected.

X account “Republicans against Trump” wrote, “I like a president who does not congratulate Vladimir Putin.”

User Michigan GOP Watch took aim at Trump and wrote, “Paul Whelan was held hostage for 5 years and he’s congratulating Putin. Trump is a traitor.”

Another X user Joshua Reed Eakle wrote, “Not Americans. Not Biden. Not the Americans being held as political prisoners. Vladimir Putin. What a repugnant, anti-American human being.”

Trump has been critical of Biden’s handling of prisoner swaps in the past, accusing him of trading potentially dangerous Russian nationals in exchange for U.S. citizens being held hostage. The former president has said that Biden’s deals are “one-sided” and has suggested he could secure releases without concessions.

However, Trump also engaged in prisoner exchanges as president. In November 2019, he traded three Taliban leaders in exchange for two Americans, Kevin King and Timothy Weeks. The following year, the U.S. returned an Iranian scientist just days before Iran released Marine Michael White from custody, though officials denied that this was a prisoner swap.

Trump has said he secured the release of 58 hostages while serving as president. The Trump White House online archive, meanwhile, wrote that Trump freed 56 hostages “from more than 24 countries.”

According to the White House, Biden has now secured the release of more than 70 Americans in various hostage releases across the globe.