US citizens Alexander John-Robert Drueke, 39, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh, 27, of Hartselle, Alabama, were interviewed by Russian broadcaster RT at a detention center in the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) Friday, according to a report published on RT.
The two Americans disappeared on June 9 during a battle north of Kharkiv and were feared to have been captured by Russian forces, according to their families and a fellow combatant.
Short video clips appeared on pro-Russian channels and social media on Friday that appeared to show the men arrested at an undisclosed location. At the time it was not clear who was holding her.
A State Department spokesman told CNN on Friday they had “seen the photos and videos of these two US citizens who were reportedly captured by Russian forces in Ukraine” and are “monitoring the situation closely.”
“We are in contact with the Ukrainian authorities, the International Committee of the Red Cross and with the families themselves,” they continued. “Due to privacy concerns, we have no further comments on these cases.”
Separately, a more than 50-minute edited video was released on Saturday in which Drueke and Huynh were interviewed by HelmCast, a pro-Russian Serbian nationalist YouTube channel.
In the interview, a man behind the camera can be heard revealing the location of their interview when he says, “Here in Donetsk” during a question for Drueke.
Drueke is also asked in the interview if he has any objections to the way he has been treated since his arrest and he admits he was beaten.
CNN chose not to air the videos of US detainees because they show the men speaking under duress.
Speaking of development
The location of Drueke and Huynh’s detention is a potentially worrying development. Russia has a moratorium on the death penalty while Donetsk uses firing squads to execute convicted prisoners, according to Russian state media RIA Novosti.
On June 9, a court in the DPR sentenced foreign militants, two British nationals and one Moroccan national, to death after accusing them of being “mercenaries” for Ukraine. The internationally unrecognized court in the DPR said the men had one month to appeal their sentences.
Hopes that a prisoner swap between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists could free all foreign fighters detained in Donetsk appeared to have been dashed after Denis Pushilin, the self-proclaimed head of the DPR, said such a swap was out of the question.
“Replacing the British men sentenced to death in the DPR is not being discussed, there is no reason to pardon them,” Pushilin told the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta on Thursday.
The Donetsk People’s Republic did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the detention of Drueke and Huynh.
Former soldier describes combat
In an exclusive chat with CNN’s Sam Kiley, a former US soldier who fought with Ukrainian forces recounted the battle he witnessed on June 9 when Huynh and Drueke were allegedly captured.
The man, who asked to be identified with the codename “Pip,” said his team had been sent on a mission east of Kharkiv where a full-scale Russian tank attack was underway.
According to Pip, Huynh and Drueke fired an RPG at a BMP – an infantry fighting vehicle – that was coming through the forest and destroyed it. But the team was forced to retreat quickly as more than 100 Russian infantrymen advanced and the American fighters found themselves in a village they previously thought was in Ukrainian hands.
When asked what happened to Huynh and Drueke, Pip said, “We suspect they were either knocked out by the T-72 tank firing on them or by the mine exploding. That’s just speculation, we don’t know what really happened to them.”
Separately, a man who was serving as the team’s sergeant and wished to remain anonymous for security reasons previously told CNN it was “absolute chaos.”
“There were about a hundred plus infantry advancing on our positions. We had a T-72 firing at people from 30, 40 meters away,” he said.
A photo of the two men with their hands tied on the back of a Russian truck surfaced on Thursday. The undated photo was posted to Telegram by a Russian blogger on Thursday. CNN could not independently verify when the photo was taken.
Third American missing
A third American missing in Ukraine, according to the State Department, has been identified as US Navy veteran Grady Kurpasi, his wife confirmed to CNN on Thursday.
The last time Heeson heard from Kim and other close friends of Kurpasi was between April 23 and 24, George Heath, a friend of Kurpasi’s family, told CNN. Kurpasi served 20 years in the US Marine Corps and retired in November 2021. He decided to volunteer to work alongside Ukrainians in Ukraine, but didn’t initially envision fighting on the front lines of the war, Heath said.
On Friday, US President Joe Biden said he had been briefed on the three Americans missing in Ukraine. In remarks to reporters, Biden repeatedly said Americans should not travel to Ukraine at this time.
“We don’t know where they are, but I want to reiterate: Americans shouldn’t go to Ukraine right now,” Biden said in response to a question from CNN’s MJ Lee at the White House.
CNN’s Sarah El Sirgany, Maija-Liisa Ehlinger, Ellie Kaufman, Michael Conte, Jennifer Hansler, Kate Sullivan and Mick Krever contributed coverage.