First Thing: Evan Gershkovich freed in largest US-Russian prisoner swap since cold war

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris meet Wall Street Journal reporter as he steps off the plane in Washington. Plus, Simone Biles wins sixth Olympic gold

Good morning.

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have met the Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and two other freed American prisoners after Washington and Moscow completed their largest prisoner exchange since the cold war.

Who were the freed prisoners? There were 16 American, Russian dissident and German prisoners freed by Russia, in exchange for eight Russians freed by the US, Germany, Norway, Slovenia and Poland. Those returning to Russia included a number of undercover spies and a convicted FSB assassin whom Vladimir Putin had sought to free from German prison for years.

How did the deal come about? The complex deal had involved months of negotiations between countries and came together in extreme secrecy. The US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters that the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was meant to be a part of the deal before his death in February.