Paul Whelan is finally free of Russia's icy grip.
Whelan, who holds an Irish passport among others, was part of the largest prisoner swap since the Cold War Thursday.
Other Americans released by the Russians were Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva.
All three were greeted by President Biden and Vice President Harris when they landed at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.
Whelan is a former U.S. marine with U.S., Irish, UK, and Canadian passports who was serving 16 years in jail for spying.
Whelan denied the charges during a trial that was held behind closed doors in Moscow. He claimed he was framed when arrested in 2018 for allegedly taking possession of a computer memory stick that contained Russian state secrets.
Then Secretary of State at the time, Mike Pompeo, described the treatment of Whelan as outrageous and appalling.
The Biden administration continued the efforts to free Whelan and those efforts have now, finally, paid off.
