The Russian Prosecutor’s Office announced Thursday that the American journalist from the Wall Street Journal, Evan Gershkovich, would soon be tried in Yekaterinburg, in the Urals, for “espionage”. When this news was announced, the journalist, detained in Lefortovo prison for more than a year, rejected all accusations outright.
He is accused of having collected information on a tank factory on behalf of the CIA, the American intelligence service. It is now up to the court to set the date for the start of the trial. If he is convicted, he faces a sentence of 20 years in prison.
What exactly happened?
Aged 32, Evan Gershkovich is currently a journalist for the Wall Street Journal and he also served as AFP correspondent in Moscow between 2020 and 2021. Evan Gershkovich was arrested in March 2023 by the Russian security services (FSB) while reporting in Yekaterinburg. According to the Russian Prosecutor’s Office, “the investigation established and documented that Evan Gershkovich (…) was instructed by the CIA in March 2023 to collect secret information in the Sverdlovsk region on the activities of Uralvagonzavod”.
This defense company is one of Russia’s largest arms manufacturers, notably producing T-90 battle tanks used in Ukraine and the new generation Armata tank, as well as freight wagons. Russia has never publicly provided any evidence and the entire procedure has been classified. The prosecutor did not provide any additional information on Thursday.
What are the reactions to this announcement?
There were numerous reactions to the announcement of the Russian Prosecutor’s Office’s decision. Those close to him, Washington and NATO have therefore called for his “immediate” release. “These accusations have zero credibility,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said. He also clarified that “the accusations against him are false and the Russian government knows that they are false.” “I join the United States in calling on Russia to release journalist Evan Gershkovich. He is a journalist, he carries out his work as a journalist on behalf of a free media and, therefore, he must be released,” reacted Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General.
In New York, the Wall Street Journal immediately published a press release, denouncing a “scandalous” “sham” of justice and asking for help from the American government for the “immediate release” of its journalist. “Evan Gershkovich is the subject of false and baseless accusations. The step that Russia has just taken to organize a mock trial is not surprising but very disappointing and equally scandalous,” the statement said.
Are there contacts between the United States and Russia?
Since the arrest of its national, Washington has always accused Moscow of having taken him hostage to obtain an exchange, as has already been done in the past. Indeed, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was willing to exchange the journalist for Vadim Krassikov, a Russian imprisoned for life in Germany for the assassination of a former Chechen war commander in Berlin in 2019.
At the beginning of June, Vladimir Putin even indicated that contacts were “constant” between Russia and the United States to reach an agreement. “I won’t go into details. I know that the American administration is acting energetically to obtain his release,” explained the Russian leader, adding that the talks must be carried out with the greatest discretion.