Evan Gershkovich is being held in a pretrial detention center at the Lefortovo prison until May 29, where the journalist stands accused of spying on behalf of the United States. He has filed an appeal while his outlet and the Biden administration have denounced the charges."We are encouraged that Evan’s lawyers, retained by Dow Jones, were able to meet with him in prison today. Evan’s health is good, and he is grateful for the outpouring of support from around the world.
State Department officials are also trying to get consular access to Gershkovich"very, very hard, and yet we've still not been able to do that," national security council coordinator John Kirby told reporters on Monday. The Biden administration is preparing to declare him wrongfully detained, according to CNN, which cited two unnamed U.S. officials.
The designation, which the newspaper reported on Tuesday will happen in the coming days, will put his case under the special presidential envoy for hostage affairs while opening the possibility for additional resources to be directed at securing his release.
Biden administration officials have rebuked the arrest and called for the journalist's release, including during a conversation over the weekend between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.