IPI and its global network demand today the immediate release of Wall Street Journal correspondent Evan Gershkovich, who was detained in the central Russian city of Yekaterinburg on March 29 while on assignment. We are appalled at reports confirming that a court in Moscow has placed the American journalist under after the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) a criminal case for espionage against him. If convicted, Gershkovich would face 10 to 20 years in prison.
In a published on March 30, The Wall Street Journal said it 鈥渧ehemently denies the allegations from the FSB and seeks the immediate release of our trusted and dedicated reporter, Evan Gershkovich”. The paper added: 鈥淲e stand in solidarity with Evan and his family.鈥澨�
鈥淭he IPI global network is outraged by the arrest of Evan Gershkovich and we call on Russian authorities to free him without delay鈥�, IPI Deputy Director Scott Griffen said. 鈥淎rresting a foreign journalist on espionage charges is a serious escalation of Russia鈥檚 attacks on journalism. It underscores the depth of Russia鈥檚 effort to silence coverage of Putin鈥檚 war on Ukraine, which has already led to a serious crackdown on Russian journalists. Now, that dragnet appears to be expanding further.鈥�
According to IPI monitoring, Gershkovich鈥檚 detention is the first case since the beginning of Russia鈥檚 full-scale invasion of Ukraine in which a Western journalist has been charged in Russia in relation to their reporting on the war. It is also the of an American journalist being accused of espionage on Russian soil.
Reporting on Wagner Group and Ukraine war
According to independent Russian media, Gershkovich was on the evening of March 29 at a restaurant in Yekaterinburg, where he met with local contact Yaroslav Shirshkov. The man reportedly helped guide Gershkovich during his reporting work in the city, where he was focusing on recruiting efforts by the private military group Wagner, as well as locals鈥� attitudes towards the group and the war in Ukraine.
Local media eyewitnesses claiming that a man had been arrested on the same evening at the restaurant where Gershkovich and Shirshkov had met, adding that it was impossible to identify the detained person, as plainclothes officials from Russian security forces covered his face with his sweater.
However, the following morning the FSB to Russian media that a criminal case for 鈥渆spionage鈥� had been opened against the journalist. According to officials, Gershkovich 鈥渃ollected secret information鈥� about an unnamed Russian defense industry facility. Russian online media outlet said the facility in question could have been the Uralvagonzavod factory located in Nizhny Tagil, in the region of Yekaterinburg, where Gershkovich had also recently traveled for reporting work.
According to Vyacheslav Vegner, a member of the Yekaterinburg-based Sverdlovsk regional assembly, the Wall Street Journal reporter met with him and asked questions about the drafting of female prisoners into the ranks of Wagner, as well as on the 鈥減reparation of personnel鈥� for Russia鈥檚 war in Ukraine, the Russian Service of the BBC.
Facing at least 10 years behind bars
Russian officials have denied the case is related to journalism. Vladimir Putin鈥檚 press secretary commented on the case, saying he had 鈥渘othing to add鈥� and that the case was a 鈥減rerogative of the FSB鈥�. Gershkovich was 鈥渃aught with evidence鈥�, he claimed.
Maria Zakharova, the spokeswoman of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also that Gershkovich鈥檚 activities in Russia 鈥渉ad no relation to journalism鈥�. 鈥淯nfortunately, this is not the first case in which the status of a 鈥榝oreign correspondent鈥�, a journalistic visa or accreditation is used by foreigners in our country to cover up activities which are not journalism. This is not the first case in which a Westerner is caught red-handed鈥�, she wrote on Telegram.
Contrary to Zakharova鈥檚 statements, the case against Gershkovich is in fact a rare example of a foreign correspondent based in Russia facing charges. To date, such journalists were largely immune from prosecution, for instance for publishing content related to Russia鈥檚 war in Ukraine not based on official sources. Publishing such content is considered an administrative offense (or criminal if repeated) in Russia, and has led to the opening of dozens of cases against Russian journalists. In comparison, similar actions have seemingly not been taken against foreign journalists in Russia for their war-related publications.听
Charges of espionage under the Russian penal code carry heavy prison sentences, with those found guilty facing at least ten years behind bars. Indictments of journalists under this crime are rare. Crimes more commonly used to target independent journalists in Russia include “discrediting” the Russian armed forces or publishing 鈥渇ake news鈥� about the war. While both can be considered criminal offences, authorities can choose to apply a wide array of penalties, with fines ranging from 30,000 to five million rubles (350 to 6000 thousand euros).
To date, only one Russian journalist in recent history has been convicted of an offence of similar weight in Russia鈥檚 criminal code. Ivan Safronov, a former correspondent of RBC, a semi-independent online Russian media, was sentenced to 22 years in prison last September, for allegedly sharing information with Czech intelligence services, in a case as politically motivated.
As of March 2023, dozens of Russian journalists have been prosecuted for allegedly 鈥渄iscrediting鈥� the Russian army or publishing 鈥渇ake news鈥� on the war in Ukraine. At least three, Mikhail Afanasyev, Sergey Mikhailov and Maria Ponomarenko, remain behind bars for their reporting on Russia鈥檚 large-scale invasion.