The hearing in the trial of the journalist will be held on August 13th in Russia Wall Street Journal Evan Gershkovicharrested on March 29, 2023 in Yekaterinburg with theespionage charge. The officials of the relevant Russian court reported it: the trial, a closed doorsopened today at Yekaterinburg. Journalists were allowed into the courtroom for a few minutes before the proceedings were closed. According to the American embassy, they were also briefly admitted to court two consular officials of the US embassy in Moscow.
The no comment of the Kremlin and the solidarity of colleagues for Gershkovich
The solidarity of colleagues at home was immediate: “Today our colleague Evan Gershkovich addressed the Russian regime’s shameful and illegitimate prosecution against him. It is disconcerting to see him in yet another courtroom for a show trial held in secret and based on trumped-up charges” Almar Latour, CEO of, declared this in a note Dow Jones and editor of Wall Street Journal, and Emma Tucker, editor-in-chief of the US newspaper. “Even though we are told he is fine under the circumstances, Evan’s wrongful imprisonment continues to be a devastating attack on his freedom and his job and an unfathomable attack on the freedom of the press“, stated the leaders of the Wsj.
The Kremlin he refused to comment on rumors of a possible prisoner exchange deal with the United States involving Gershkovich. Only the Kremlin spokesperson intervened on the matter, tersely, Dmitry Peskovtaken from Tax. The issue of the exchange of prisoners, for Peskov, “loves silence“, so it is impossible to talk about signs for a possible transfer of the journalist to the United States. Peskov reiterated that it is necessary to wait for the court’s decision on the journalist’s case. “Now, as before, we cannot talk about any signals. We can only repeat that this topic loves silence“, underlined Peskov, emphasizing that “this topic is very resonant in the United States, but it is not so resonant in our country“, almost as if to diminish the media coverage of the case.
What risks Gershkovich
The correspondent of Wall Street Journal He is the first Western journalist to be arrested for espionage in Russia since the Cold War: son of Russian Jews (his ancestry will be his credentials) was stopped in March 2023 during a trip for a report on Yekaterinburg, the trial began today after 15 months of detention. Russian prosecutors have accused Gershkovich of being in the pay of the CIA and of “collect secret information” about the country’s main tank manufacturer in the Urals – claims that Washington says are totally fabricated. The Kremlin has not provided no public evidence for the charges, stating only that he was caught”with our hands in the bag“. If convicted, Gershkovich could face up to 20 years in a penal colony. The 32-year-old spent almost 15 months in Moscow’s Lefortovo prison following his arrest.
Gershkovich should have taken care of the Wagner Brigadeand above all to the enlistment methods of the company led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, who in those days had hit the headlines for his boss’s outbursts against the Russian leaders. The journalist had gone to Nizhny Tagil, in the Yekaterinburg region, at the headquarters of Uralvagonzavod, one of the largest companies for the production of armaments. And it is precisely that reportage that would have gotten him into trouble with the accusation of collecting secret information on the production and repair of armaments and tanks, after being placed on the CIA’s payroll. According to the FSB version, the reporter was investigating an important company in the Russian military industry.
The refusal of bail and the rumors about the exchange with Krasikov
In September 2023 there were rumors of a prisoner exchange involving the infamous Vadim Krasikov, the killer who five years ago murdered a Chechen rebel leader who had taken refuge in Germany in a Berlin park. In exchange, Moscow could have released Gershkovich, arrested six months earlier. In the same period there were rumors of a possible exchange of excellent prisoners which would have even involved Aleksei Navalny and the former US marine Paul Whelan, also an alleged spy. Joe Biden, at the time, had also said he was willing to make an exchange to save Gershkovich, but without ever mentioning Krasikov.
After about a month in prison, in April last year a request for release was presented by his lawyers, which, however, was rejected. The journalist’s legal team explained that they had proposed a bail of around $612,000 to the court.
Dow Jones, the owner of the WSJ, had provided a letter of guarantee, but his attempt was to no avail. Gershkovich is, in fact, one of the many aces up the sleeve through which Moscow can negotiate with the West from a position of strength. And you can bet: the trial won’t be so short,
