After Russia released an American prisoner, President Trump’s special envoy praised President Vladimir V. Putin as “a humanitarian.” Our White House and national security correspondent, David E. Sanger, describes how the release comes amid Mr. Trump’s broader shift toward Russia and away from Ukraine.

Peter Baker, our chief White House correspondent, reports from Oslo, where Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelensky, met with President Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff.

This quarter’s campaign finance report shows that the world’s richest man is the top political donor of this midterm election. Our reporter Theodore Schleifer explains how Elon Musk came back from a brief rift with President Trump and Republicans to become a central player in the party’s campaign to hold Congress.

Our national security and White House correspondent David E. Sanger breaks down why President Donald Trump struck a deal with President Vladimir V. Putin to import Russian diesel fuel in the coming months, despite having signed recent congressional legislation tightening energy sanctions on Russia.