The United States is concerned about the situation with the arrest in Russia of an American citizen and journalist of The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) Evan Gershkovich, said the head of the US State Department, Anthony Blinken, in a statement published on the agency’s website.
“We condemn in the strongest terms the Kremlin’s ongoing attempts to intimidate and repress journalists and civil society,” Blinken said, calling on all US citizens to leave Russia.
On the morning of March 30, Gershkovich was detained in Yekaterinburg. According to the position of the Russian authorities, the Journalist was suspected of collecting materials constituting a state secret about a Russian defense industry enterprise.
A correspondent of an American newspaper was prosecuted under article 276 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“Espionage”). Shortly thereafter, the WSJ expressed deep concern about Hershkowitz’s safety.