Earlier on Thursday, Gershkovich was detained by Russia’s Federal Security Service in Yekaterinburg on suspicion of spying for the US.
Moscow’s Lefortovo District Court has arrested the Wall Street Journal (WSJ)’s Moscow bureau correspondent, Evan Gershkovich, for two months on espionage charges, the court told Sputnik on Thursday.
A Russian law enforcement officer gestures outside the Lefortovsky court after Evan Gershkovich, US journalist working for the Wall Street Journal detained in Russia on suspicion of spying for Washington, was escorted out of it in Moscow on March 30, 2023 - Sputnik International, 1920, 30.03.2023
A Russian law enforcement officer gestures outside the Lefortovsky court after Evan Gershkovich, US journalist working for the Wall Street Journal detained in Russia on suspicion of spying for Washington, was escorted out of it in Moscow on March 30, 2023
This is what is known so far about Gershkovich’s detention:
On March 30, the reporter, who is in his early 30s, was detained in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg while trying to obtain classified information for the US.
Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said in a statement that Gershkovich, “acting on the instructions of the American side, collected information constituting a state secret about the activities of one of the enterprises of the Russian military-industrial complex.”
The FSB added that they had thwarted “the illegal activities” of Gershkovich, who reported on Russia as part of the WSJ’s Moscow bureau.
According to the statement, the individual in question was accredited to work as a journalist in Russia by the country’s Foreign Ministry.
The FSB’s Investigation Department has opened a criminal case against Gershkovich under the Russian Criminal Code’s Section 276 ("Espionage" ).
Moscow's Take on the Matter
Commenting on a possible response measure by the US, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov expressed hope that there will be no reaction. "We hope that this will not happen and this should not happen because once again I repeat we are not talking about suspicion, it is about the fact that he was caught red-handed," he told reporters on Thursday.
Additionally, he underscored that employees of the WSJ Moscow bureau can continue to work if they are accredited.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov, for his part, said that the question of exchanging Gershkovich with the US is not on the table yet.
"I would not raise a question in this regard at all now because, you know, some exchanges that took place in the past pertained to people who were already serving sentences," the Russian diplomat pointed out.
He spoke as Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on her Telegram channel that "What an employee of the US paper The Wall Street Journal was doing in Yekaterinburg has nothing to do with journalism.
"Unfortunately, this is not the first time that the status of a ‘foreign correspondent’, a journalistic visa and accreditation are used by foreigners in our country to cover up activities that are not related to journalism. He is not the first well-known Westerner who got caught in action," Zakharova added.
Zakharova told Sputnik that consular access has been granted to the arrested journalist.
The US newspaper said that it “vehemently denies the allegations from the FSB and seeks the immediate release of our trusted and dedicated reporter, Evan Gershkovich.”
The WSJ added that they “stand in solidarity with Evan and his family.”
Washington's Reaction
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that US President Biden has been briefed about reports regarding the detention of Evan Gerschkovich.
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that the United States was not notified ahead of time about the arrest of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in Russia.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a press release that the State Department has been in direct contact with the Russian government regarding the case.
Washington is concerned by the reporter's detention, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said adding that the Biden administration continues to urge US citizens in Russia to depart immediately.
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