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Russia, the trial against the American journalist Gershkovich continues

2024-07-18 16:03:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Russia, the trial against the American journalist Gershkovich continues

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich stands locked in a glass cell in a courthouse in Yekaterinburg, Russia on June 26, 2024. Source: AP

American journalist Evan Gershkovich appeared in the second session of the trial against him in Russia. He was arrested in March of last year on charges of espionage while on assignment from The Wall Street Journal. The newspaper and US officials have denounced the trial as fabricated and illegal. The State Department has declared him 'unjustly detained', a decision that forces the US government to press harder for his release.

The trial against journalist Gershkovich is being held behind closed doors in Yekaterinburg, a city near the Ural mountains where he was arrested more than a year ago. He is accused of espionage.

During the first session, the trial was postponed until mid-August, but the American journalist's lawyers requested that the trial continue quickly, the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti and independent news website Mediazoan reported. .

Russia's Prosecutor General's Office said last month that the journalist is accused of "gathering secret information" at the behest of the CIA. According to the indictment, Mr. Gershkovich was gathering information about Uralvagonzavod, a plant about 150 kilometers north of Yekaterinburg that manufactures and repairs tanks and other military equipment.

The Wall Street Journal and US officials have rejected the accusation and denounced the process as illegal.

"Evan has never worked for the US government and he is not a spy. Journalism is not a crime and Evan should not have been arrested. Russia has not provided evidence to justify his continued detention,'' John Kirby, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said last month when Russia began legal proceedings against Mr. Gershkovich.

If convicted, Mr. Gershkovich could face up to 20 years in prison.

Russia has signaled the possibility of a prisoner swap involving journalist Gershkovich, but it says a decision on the journalist must be made first, which could take months.

But even if such a decision is made, it may take months or years to exchange the prisoners.

It is almost certain that journalist Gershkovich will be convicted. Russian courts convict more than 99% of defendants. Prosecutors can appeal sentences they consider too lenient and can even appeal their release.

The journalist of "The Wall Street Journal" is the son of Russian immigrants from the Soviet Union. He is the first American journalist to be arrested and tried on charges of espionage in the period after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The State Department has declared the man 'wrongfully detained', a decision that forces the US government to press harder for his release.

Another American journalist, Alsu Kurmasheva, has been in prison for eight months because she did not register as a foreign agent. The journalist, who also has Russian citizenship, of Radio Free Europe, which, like the Voice of America, is part of the American Global Media Agency, denies having committed any violation./ VOA