According to the Wall Street Journal, Evan Gershkovich, a 31-year-old Bowdoin College graduate and reporter for the publication, has been detained on espionage charges in Russia. Gershkovich, who joined the Journal in January 2022, has been working as a journalist in the country since 2017 and has previously written for the Moscow Times, Agence France-Presse, and the New York Times.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) states that this marks the first detention of a U.S. journalist on espionage charges in Russia since the 1986 case of Nicholas Daniloff. Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, called the arrest “a new low in the U.S.-Russia relationship” and said it set a concerning precedent.
Gershkovich’s detention comes amid heightened tensions between the two nations, with the U.S. having recently released convicted Russian arms trafficker Viktor Bout in exchange for American basketball star Brittney Griner. Furthermore, Russia has held former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan on espionage charges since 2018, with no resolution in sight.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov stated that it was too early to discuss the possibility of exchanging Gershkovich for another individual. Gershkovich, who pleaded not guilty at a closed hearing, has had his case designated as top secret, as reported by TASS.
Since President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the subsequent crackdown on domestic dissent, reporting in Russia has become increasingly difficult. Media freedom advocacy groups such as Reporters Without Borders and the CPJ have criticized Gershkovich’s arrest and called for his immediate release.
Despite these challenges, some news organizations have restored their Russia-based reporters, and the Russian Foreign Ministry continues to extend accreditation to select foreign journalists. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that those with valid accreditation and conducting “normal journalistic activities” would be allowed to continue working.
