Wall Street Journal reporter, Evan Gershkovich, appeared briefly before journalists in a Russian court on Wednesday as his espionage trial commenced, a charge he staunchly denies.
Gershkovich, 32, stood in a glass enclosure, dressed in an open-neck shirt, his arms folded.
Prosecutors accuse the Wall Street Journal reporter of obtaining classified information on behalf of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency concerning a company manufacturing tanks for Russia’s war effort in Ukraine. Conviction could result in a sentence of up to 20 years.
Both Gershkovich, his newspaper, and the U.S. government deny the allegations, asserting that he was merely performing his duties as a journalist accredited by Russia’s Foreign Ministry.
The trial will proceed behind closed doors, barring media, friends, family, and U.S. Embassy staff from attending—a standard procedure in espionage or treason cases in Russia.
Amid the Ukraine conflict, Gershkovich and other Americans detained in Russia are entangled in the most severe crisis between Moscow and Washington in over six decades.
President Vladimir Putin has indicated that Russia is open to a potential prisoner exchange involving Gershkovich, with contacts between Russia and the United States ongoing but kept confidential.
The U.S. government has labeled Russia’s actions as “hostage diplomacy,” designating Gershkovich and another imprisoned American, Paul Whelan, as “wrongfully detained,” and pledges to secure their return.
During his nearly 15 months in Moscow’s notorious Lefortovo prison, Gershkovich has immersed himself in Russian literary classics like “War and Peace” and engaged in slow-paced chess by mail with his father in the U.S. He maintains his fitness during the one-hour exercise period allowed daily.
Friends who correspond with him describe Gershkovich as resilient and optimistic, rarely succumbing to discouragement despite the challenges posed by President Vladimir V. Putin’s regime. On Wednesday, he faced trial with the possibility of a 20-year sentence for espionage, a charge vehemently denied by him, his employer, and the U.S. State Department.
“He may have ups and downs like everyone else, but he remains confident in himself, in his rightness,” said Maria Borzunova, a Russian journalist. She is part of a close-knit group of Gershkovich’s friends who have undertaken the monumental task of translating thousands of letters from supporters into Russian to facilitate their approval by prison censors.
