A Russian court has decided to reduce the prison sentence of a US soldier who was found guilty last year of theft and making threats of murder, as reported by state media on Monday. This decision is seen as an indication of warming relations between Washington and Moscow. Initially sentenced by a court in Vladivostok in June 2024 to three years and nine months in jail, an appeals court has cut his sentence to three years and two months, according to RIA and Tass state news agencies. US Staff Sergeant Gordon Black had traveled to Vladivostok in April 2024 to meet his girlfriend, Alexandra Vashchuk, whom he had met while stationed in South Korea. However, things took an unfortunate turn when Black was arrested on May 2 by Vashchuk on accusations of theft and making death threats. At his trial, Black did not admit to the death threats but confessed to taking money, claiming it was out of necessity. The leniency in Black’s sentence comes at a time when there seems to be improvement in the ties between the US and Russia, as US President Donald Trump is seeking to establish a reconciliation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the goal of ending Russia’s conflict in Ukraine. This includes recent talks in Washington with Putin’s investment envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, after years of absence of such high-level meetings due to stringent sanctions. The discussions have been seen as a significant step towards a potential peace agreement in Ukraine, with the US choosing not to include Russia in the list of countries and territories facing new tariffs, acknowledging that current sanctions preclude any meaningful trade between the US and Russia. In a reciprocal gesture, Russia released US citizen Kalob Byers, who had been imprisoned on drug smuggling charges, implying a broader context of improving Russian-US relations. However, some US citizens, including corporate security executive Paul Whelan, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, and teacher Marc Fogel, remain imprisoned in Russia, underscoring ongoing complications in US-Russia relations.

Source: https://www.euronews.com/2025/04/07/russian-court-reduces-jail-sentence-of-us-soldier-gordon-black-as-diplomatic-ties-thaw