Saved from a Russian death sentence: Two American prisoners of war facing a firing squad after being captured in Ukraine are FREED 'following mediation by Saudi Crown Prince' - on day Putin threatened nuclear war

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Two US military veterans facing death by firing squad have been freed from Russia, three months after they were captured in Ukraine while fighting alongside Zelensky's troops. 

Alexander Drueke, 40, and Andy Huynh, 27, were both freed thanks to a prisoner exchange brokered by Saudi Arabia, a family representative told Reuters on Wednesday.

The pair, both from Alabama, were captured in June while fighting in eastern Ukraine where they went to support Ukrainian troops resisting Russia's invasion.

They are currently in the custody of the US Embassy in Saudi Arabia, with their families celebrating their freedom. 

'We are thrilled to announce that Alex and Andy are free,' the families said. 'They are safely in the custody of the US embassy in Saudi Arabia and after medical checks and debriefing they will return to the States.'

'We deeply appreciate everyone's prayers and especially the close communication and support of our elected officials, Ukrainian Ambassador Markarova, and our members of the US embassies in Ukraine and Saudi Arabia and the US Department of State,' the statement continued.

Along with the two Americans, eight other prisoner of wars were freed, including five British nationals, one Moroccan, one Swede and one Croatian. 

The exchange comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to use nuclear force in Ukraine following repeated defeats in the war. 

Drueke, 40, left, and Andy Huynh, 27, appeared terrified in footage released by Russian forces where they identified themselves and denounced war. They men went missing in June after their platoon in Ukraine was ambushed by Russian soldiers 

Also released were former British soldiers Aiden Aslin (left) and Shaun Pinner (right), as well as Moroccan Brahim Saadoun (center). All three men had been sentenced to death in June   

Pictured: The released POW's arriving in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Drueke can be seen descending the stairs on the mid-left, with Huynh right below him. 

The men will be staying in their respective embassy's until they can be released back home

Russia on Wednesday released 10 foreign prisoners of war captured in Ukraine, following a mediation by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi foreign ministry said.

Ukrainian officials released Russian prisoners they'd captured in exchange. Further details on the identities of the other fighters released has not been shared.  

Drueke and Huynh were believed to be the first U.S. citizens confirmed captured by Russia's forces in eastern Ukraine when they were reported missing in mid-June.

At the time, Huynh's fiancé, Joy Black, told Reuters the men had been motivated to support Kyiv in its fight against Russia after watching television footage from Ukraine in the first weeks after Russia invaded.

In an emailed statement to Reuters on Wednesday, Dianna Shaw, Drueke's aunt and a spokesperson for both families, confirmed that Drueke and Huynh were among the 10 who had been released on Wednesday.

Shaw said in a statement the her nephew appeared to be in good health and was a amazed that Saudi Arabia played a role in securing his safety. 

'I never dreamed that it was a possibility that the Saudi government would be able to do something like this,' she told the Washington Post. 

Both of the U.S. fighters are from Alabama and had disabled a Russian tank with a grenade but were lost in the fog of return fire

Huynh's fiancée Joy Black (above), had pleaded for the government to help facilitate his release after videos of both Huynh and Drueke were released disavowing their efforts to help Ukraine in a Russian propaganda video 

Robert Jenrick, the UK's Minister of State at the Department of Health and Social Care, confirmed that one of the British nationals freed was Aiden Aslin, 28, a former soldier who moved to the Ukraine in 2018. 

Aslin, from Newark, had settled down with a Ukrainian woman before war broke out, and he enlisted in the military to fight for the country. 

He had been in Donbas with another former British soldier, Shaun Pinner, 48, before the duo were captured and sentenced to death by firing squad. 

In a statement, Jenrick, who represents Aslin's native district, applauded the work to bring back the five British captives. 

'I am deeply grateful for the work undertaken by the Ukrainian government, the Saudi Crown Prince, the Prime Minister, and the dedicated civil servants working in the Foreign Office's Detainees team to bring their horrific ordeal to a close,' he said. 

'Aiden's return brings to an end months of agonizing uncertainty for Aiden's loving family in Newark who suffered every day of Aiden's sham trial but never lost hope,' he add. 'As they are united as a family once more, they can finally be at peace.'

UK Prime Minister Liz Truss also celebrated in a tweet, writing: 'Hugely welcome news that five British nationals held by Russian-backed proxies in eastern Ukraine are being safely returned, ending months of uncertainty and suffering for them and their families.' 

Former British soldier Aiden Aslin (pictured) was as one of the five British captives released

Both Aslin (left) and Pinner (right) had settled down in the Ukraine in 2018 before taking up arms for the country as part of its 36th Marine Brigade 

UK Prime Minister Liz Truss celebrated the release of the five British nationals

There was no official comment from Russia on the release.

Both Drueke of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Huynh of Hartselle, Alabama, had served in the U.S. military.

After they were captured by Russian forces, the two were detained in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), a Russian-backed separatist regime in eastern Ukraine.

Russian state TV filmed interviews with the pair in which they said they had changed their opinion about the war since being sent to fight, in clips their family said were clearly coerced and being used for propaganda purposes.

Alexander Drueke, left, and Andy Huynh, right, have both been freed after they were captured by Russia while fighting in Ukraine. The US military veterans' freedom was arranged in a deal brokered by Saudi Arabia 

The two Americans were freed thanks to a prisoner exchange brokered by Saudi leader Prince Mohammed bin Salman (pictured, right, with Joe Biden in Jeddah in July)

In June, the Kremlin warned that Drueke and Huynh faced a firing squad, because they were considered 'soldiers of fortune.'

The Kremlin said the men were not eligible for the rights afforded to prisoners of war captured by rivals, because they hadn't enlisted for the foreign army they were fighting with.

Speaking to the Guardian in June after State Department officials managed to confirm Drueke was alive in captivity, his aunt Dianna Shaw said: 'He is okay. Receiving food and water and has shelter and bedding.'

Prisoners of war captured by Russia are released in exchange negotiated by Saudi Arabia  

Saudi Arabia announced on Wednesday that it had successfully brokered a prisoner of war swap between Russian and Ukraine. 

Among the 10 soldiers freed from Russian custody were two Americans, five British nationals, one Moroccan, one Swede and one Croatian.

Identified in the exchange were U.S. Army vet Alexander Drueke, 40, Marine Andy Huynh, 27, former British soldiers Aiden Aslin, 28 and Shaun Pinner, 48, and Moroccan Brahim Saadoun, 21. 

Drueke is a former U.S. Army staff sergeant who served two tours in Iraq and who volunteered with the Ukrainian Army. 

Huynh, a Marine for four years, had never been in active combat before flying to Ukraine in April to volunteer. 

U.S. Army vet Alexander Drueke (left) and Marine Andy Huynh, 27, (right) were captured while taking down a Russian tank after volunteering to fight for Ukraine

Both of the U.S. fighters are from Alabama, but it remains unclear if they knew each other before they ventured to the war zone. 

The pair were part of a ten-man squad defending Kharkiv in June when they were ambushed by Russian soldiers, according to one of their comrades. 

Drueke and Huynh disabled a Russian tank with a grenade but were lost in the fog of return fire. By the time it cleared, they had vanished. 

A week later, the missing men reappeared in videos released by the Kremlin showing them disavowing the war. 

The video, uploaded to Twitter, shows the terrified men in custody as they identify themselves and are forced to speak in Russian. 

'My name is Alexander Drueke, I am against war,' Drueke said. He then reiterates in Russian, 'Ya protiv voyny,' meaning I am against war. 

'Ya protiv voyny,' Huynh repeats after a quick cut. 

Another video shows Drueke addressing his mother, Bunny, as he promises her that he will be back home. 

'Mom, I just wanted to let you know that I'm alive, and I hope to be back home as soon as I can,' Drueke said. 'Love you.' 

Aiden Aslin (left) and Shaun Pinner (right) were among the five British nationals to be freed from captivity. The two were living in Ukraine with their wives when war broke out, leading the two to enlist in the army to fight for their new homes

In June, Aslin (left) and Pinner (right) were sentenced to death by firings squad along with Moroccan Brahim Saadoun, 21 (center)

Aslin was a Grenadier Guardsman and Pinner was in the Royal Anglian Regiment before the two men separately found themselves starting a new live in Ukraine. 

Both men sport dual-citizenship as they settled down with wives in the Ukraine in 2018 and joined the military.

Aslin had completed three tours of the frontline and was dug into trenches in the Donbas in late February when Putin's troops stormed across the border in the Ukraine invasion.

Pinner was also in Donbas at the time of invasion as he was completing his three-year contract with the Ukraine marines. His family said he was looking to become a humanitarian afterwards, but the plans were halted once Russia attacked. 

The two were subsequently captured while fighting in the frontlines in Donbas as members of Ukraine's 36th Marine Brigade. 

The men were forced to beg for their lives during scripted phone calls to family members and UK journalists by the Russian-backed separatists who were holding them captive. 

In June, the two men were put on trial and sentenced to death by firing squad along with Saadoun. 

The 21-year-old was studying at the Faculty of Aerodynamic and Space Technologies in the Kiev Polytechnic Institute when he dropped out to fight with the Ukrainian army.  

All three men were pictured behind a metal cage at a court in territory occupied by the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine.