Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich will stand trial in Russia on espionage charges, local authorities announced on Thursday.
Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office said its investigation concluded that Gershkovich “on instructions from the CIA in March 2023, collected secret information in the Sverdlovsk region,” though its statement did not include evidence to support the allegation. The office also did not say when the trial will commence.
Gershkovich was detained on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg in March of last year. He was accused of espionage on behalf of the United States, which is an allegation that he, the Wall Street Journal, and the U.S. government have denied.
The State Department has determined he meets the criteria of being wrongfully detained. The U.S. has sought to secure his release, as well as that of other Americans who have been deemed wrongfully detained.
Russian President Vladimir Putin told the Associated Press last week that the U.S. is “taking energetic steps” to secure Gershkovich’s release, noting that any such deals “aren’t decided via mass media” but through a “discreet, calm, and professional approach.”
“And they certainly should be decided only on the basis of reciprocity,” he added.
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Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison if he’s convicted.
The Biden administration has agreed to two separate hostage release deals with Russia since President Joe Biden was inaugurated in January 2021. The first secured the release of Trevor Reed, and the second secured the release of WNBA superstar Brittney Griner. In both cases, the U.S. had to give up a Russian convicted of crimes in a U.S. court.
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