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A Russian court has convicted Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich of espionage and sentenced him to 16 years in a high-security penal colony, in a potential prelude to his release in a prisoner exchange.
The Sverdlovsky regional court’s verdict on Friday brought an abrupt end to an unusually rapid trial for Gershkovich, the first US reporter arrested for spying in Russia since the cold war.
His almost inevitable conviction could be the prelude to a prisoner swap involving Russians held in the US and other western countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.
Gershkovich, 32, denied the accusations against him during two days of closed-door hearings in Ekaterinburg, the city in the Ural Mountains where he was arrested last year, according to state newswire RIA Novosti.
Prosecutors have said Gershkovich was on an assignment from the CIA to obtain “secret information” about tank production and repair at a big factory in the region.
Russia claimed to have caught Gershkovich “red-handed” when he was arrested in an Ekaterinburg café and said it had “incontrovertible proof” of his guilt, but has not provided any evidence in public.
The US and the WSJ have said the charges are baseless.
In a statement, WSJ publisher Almar Latour and editor Emma Tucker said: “This disgraceful, sham conviction comes after Evan has spent 478 days in prison, wrongfully detained, away from his family and friends, prevented from reporting, all for doing his job as a journalist.
“We will continue to do everything possible to press for Evan’s release and to support his family. Journalism is not a crime, and we will not rest until he’s released. This must end now.”
US officials are trying to secure a release for Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, a US Marine veteran serving a 16-year sentence for espionage.
Putin has said he is open to an exchange and hinted the Kremlin wants Vadim Krasikov, a hitman sentenced to life in prison in Germany in 2021, in return.
Moscow has previously swapped other prominent US citizens after they have been convicted and sentenced, including Brittney Griner, the basketball star it swapped for notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout in 2022.
Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, said during a visit to the UN in New York this week that discussions over a possible exchange were continuing.
“This subject doesn’t like fuss, the Americans periodically put it out in public, which isn’t helpful, of course. But we are in touch on this,” Lavrov said.
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