“We know that Russia will not hesitate to take more Americans hostage in order to make more deals,” Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ben Cardin (D-Md.) said on MSNBC’s “Katie Tarr Reports” on Friday. But he said that “President Biden has done a great job negotiating” the prisoner swap the U.S. agreed to with Russia this week.
Moderator Ana Cabrera asked, “Given your experience on the Foreign Relations Committee, how do you respond to those who criticize the deal, noting that the United States and its allies have had to give up two convicted international hackers, one suspected spy and one convicted murderer in this exchange? Former President Trump has said this is a victory for Putin. Is it possible that Putin will be further emboldened or that other countries will accept more American prisoners?”
“Don’t get me wrong. This is a victory for America. This is a victory for our values. We brought American citizens home. We got them out of danger. We got them out of being held in oppressive ways. So this is a victory for policy wrapped up in our values. We’re dealing with an authoritarian regime. We know they’re deal-making. They don’t care about values. But we have to stand by our values. And a warning to the American people: don’t go to Russia. I know Russia would not hesitate to take more Americans hostage in order to make more deals. But this was absolutely the right thing to do. And frankly, when you look at the trade-offs here, I think President Biden has done a great job in this negotiation,” he said.
Cardin later argued that sanctions are “effective” in deterring hostage-taking incidents.
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