The first week of President Donald Trump's second term in office has been characterized with a whirlwind of activity on the domestic front, and now a group of lawmakers is hoping that administration's swift approach to getting results bears fruit on the international stage as well.

Specifically, a group of legislators from Pennsylvania that includes Democrat Sen. John Fetterman has urged new Secretary of State Marco Rubio to take steps to ensure the return of Marc Fogel, a Butler County resident who has been detained in Russia since the summer of 2021, as CBS News reports.

Detention saga begins

Fogel's ordeal began when he was accused more than three years ago of smuggling marijuana into Russia, a scenario that led to his continued imprisonment in the country.

Having flown to Russia with his wife to fulfill the duties of a teaching job he had at the Anglo-American School, an institution with which he had been affiliated for ten years, Fogel was detained at the Moscow airport for the alleged drug offense.

Fogel's family indicates that Marc had 17 grams of medically prescribed cannabis in his possession at the time of his arrest, which he used to alleviate chronic back pain, but that explanation was insufficient for Russian authorities, who subsequently sentenced him to 14 years in prison.

Eventually, Fogel was sent to a high-security labor colony characterized by the hard labor inmates are required to perform.

Because Fogel's health is reportedly deteriorating at a rapid rate, his family -- and a bipartisan group of lawmakers, believes that it is more important than ever to secure his release and return to the United States.

Lawmakers urge action

On Thursday, the aforementioned cadre of legislators that includes Fetterman, fellow Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA), and Rep. Mike Kelley (R-PA) sent a letter to Rubio outlining Fogel's situation and requesting that he use all available diplomatic tools to bring him home to his family.

Also signing onto the letter were all 11 members of the Pennsylvania delegation to the House of Representatives, a group that includes both Republicans and Democrats.

In explaining the lawmakers' push, Kelly declared, “For years, I have met with the Fogel family and advocated for Marc's safe and swift return to the United States. The Russian government has targeted Americans, including Marc, and used them as political pawns. I look forward to working with President Trump and Secretary Rubio to reunite Marc with his family in Western Pennsylvania. The Fogel family, especially his 95-year-old mother, deserves to see Marc again.”

Fetterman echoed those sentiments, saying, “Marc Fogel is a good man who made a mistake, and now he's facing an inhumane sentence in a notoriously brutal Russian prison. Over the past two years, I've fought relentlessly to bring Marc home and I'm not stopping until we get it done.”

In their letter to Rubio, the legislative contingent declared, “President Trump has been clear that returning Americans who have been wrongfully detained is a top priority for his administration. Only the President of the United States and Secretary of State can make the hard choices necessary to bring Marc home, and you have our partnership in doing so.”

Family expresses renewed hope

The start of Trump's term appears to have brought a new sense of optimism to the Fogel family, with Marc's mother Malphine saying, “We have more hope now than we have ever. I think God's tired of hearing his name because so many people have prayed for him and are praying, and I think that it really helps.”

Precisely how Rubio and the rest of the Trump administration will react to the lawmakers' letter, however, and whether Fogel will be returned to the United States sometime in the near future, only time will tell.