Washington DC - A retired US teacher freed by President Vladimir Putin after four years' detention in Russia for allegedly fighting on behalf of Ukraine has returned to the US, his lawyer said Thursday.

"Yes, he has landed back," Stephen Hubbard's lawyer Martin De Luca told AFP, without providing details.

President Donald Trump posted photos early Thursday showing Hubbard smiling as he posed with US special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Another photo showed the former English teacher, who is in his 70s, posing with unidentified people on a small plane, holding up an American flag with two members of the group.

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Trump said Hubbard was released without the US having to agree to a prisoner swap. However, the Republican leader lifted some sanctions on Russia ahead of the release and also agreed to purchase Russian diesel – a boon to the Kremlin's ability to finance its continued invasion of Ukraine.

Witkoff was in Russia on Wednesday to meet with Putin. The Russian leader said afterward that Moscow was ready in principle to rejoin talks with Ukraine and the US to end the war.

Hubbard's family and lawyers have said he was living in the Ukrainian city of Izium when he was taken captive by Russia in 2022.

He was sentenced to almost seven years in prison, accused of acting as a "mercenary" for Kyiv. He denies the charges.

A Ukrainian who was held with Hubbard told AFP that the American was tortured in custody.