A Russian court on Tuesday rejected a complaint by U.S. reporter Evan Gershkovich about the extension of his pre-trial detention until March 30 on spying charges which he denies, the court’s press service said.
Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, was detained by the Federal Security Service (FSB) on March 29 in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg on charges of espionage that carry up to 20 years in prison.
This is the first time that the journalist has appeared in court since Vladimir Putin’s infamous interview with Tucker Carlson in which the Russian president said Gershkovich’s release was possible.
‘If our partners take reciprocal steps. The special services are in contact with one another. They are talking… I believe an agreement can be reached,’ Putin said in the widely panned interview.
The latest court appearance also comes just days after Russian dissident Alexei Navalny was found dead in a penal colony in the Arctic Circle at the age of 47.
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich pictured inside of Moscow City Court on February 20
Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, was detained by the Federal Security Service (FSB) on March 29 in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg on charges of espionage
US ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy delivers a statement outside the Moscow City Court after Gershkovich’s hearing
According to the Wall Street Journal, it could be months before Gershkovich’s trial even begins. Legal experts told the newspaper that Russian prosecutors are afforded much latitude, especially in espionage cases.
A guilty conviction could result in a sentence of anywhere between 10 and 20 years.
In December it emerged that the Biden administration made a new and significant offer aimed at securing the release of Gershkovich and fellow detainee Paul Whelan, but Russia has rejected the offer, the State Department said Tuesday.
Spokesman Matthew Miller did not reveal the details of the offer nor why Russia had turned it down, but the revelation of the proposal was a fresh indication that Washington is continuing to try to negotiate with Moscow to get both men home.
‘This was a new proposal, in recent weeks. It was a significant proposal,’ Miller said. ‘And it was rejected by the Russians but it does not, it will not deter us from continuing to do everything we can to try and bring both of them home.’
Whelan, a corporate security executive from Michigan, has been jailed in Russia since his December 2018 arrest on espionage-related charges that both he and the U.S. government dispute. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison.
‘They never should have been arrested in the first place. They should be released immediately,’ Miller said.
‘But we have made a number of proposals and including a substantial one in recent weeks and we will continue to work every day to bring Evan and Paul Whelan home. There is no prior higher priority for the Secretary of State. There is no higher priority for the president.’
In July 2022, Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed that the U.S. had made a substantial proposal, to Moscow to get home WNBA star Brittney Griner and Whelan. Griner was ultimately released in December in a prisoner swap with notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, but Whelan was not part of that deal.
Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who was detained and accused of espionage, stands inside a defendants’ cage during his verdict hearing in Moscow June 15, 2020
David Barnes was arrested in Moscow in January 2022 shortly after he arrived in the Russian capital
Just last week, a Texas father of two was sentenced to 21 years in prison in Moscow on Tuesday after a court found him guilty of abusing his two sons while in the US.
David Barnes, 66, was first arrested in January 2022 shortly after he arrived in Russia to visit his children and their mother, his ex-wife, Svetlana Koptyaeva. At the time, Barnes was applying for visitation rights.
Koptyaeva was accused of taking the children from their home in the US unlawfully, prompting an Interpol alert for the two boys. The couple had an acrimonious divorce in which she accused him of sexually abusing their childrne.
His trial started in the fall of 2022 but was not held consecutively. It finally concluded this week. During proceedings, Barnes testified on his own behalf, reports ABC News.
In response, his lawyer, Gleb Glinka, told the network that she was ‘horrified’ by the sentence. ‘There was almost no evidence that the court could base that verdict on.’
Following the verdict, Koptyaeva rejected claims that she kidnapped her children. ‘I didn’t steal anyone. I was just protecting my kids,’ she said.