Netherlands – The Moscow Times, October 29, 2024
A U.S. soldier serving a prison sentence in Russia’s Far East appeared on state television Tuesday, saying he hoped to be exchanged at some point in the future.
Gordon Black spoke to state broadcaster Rossiya from prison, looking pale and wearing the same clothes he had on at the time of his arrest earlier this year. It was not clear whether he was speaking under duress.
“Of course, I want to go home but the decision is up to my government,” Black said in comments dubbed into Russian. He added that U.S. diplomats “did come and visit me in the prison” but “they did not say anything about my possible return to my home country.”
Black was reportedly serving in South Korea when he was arrested in June. A judge in the Far East city of Vladivostok found him guilty of threatening to kill his Russian girlfriend, whom he was visiting after meeting her online, and stealing 10,000 rubles ($102) from her.
