Global Courant
WASHINGTON — U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy saw American Evan Gershkovich on Monday, the second visit by officials from the Biden administration since the arrest of the Wall Street Journal reporter in March.
US consular officials, including Tracy, were last able to see Gershkovich on April 17, about two weeks after he was arrested by Russian government officials. Tracy’s visit comes just one week after a Moscow court ruled that Gershkovich should remain in prison until August 30.
“Ambassador Tracy reports that Mr. Gershkovich is in good health and remains strong despite his circumstances,” a State Department spokesman told NBC News. “U.S. Embassy officials will continue to provide Mr. Gershkovich and his family with all appropriate support, and we expect Russian authorities to continue to grant consular access.”
The spokesman for the department called on the Russian Federation to release Gershkovich and reiterated that the allegations against the WSJ reporter are baseless.
“We also call for the immediate release of Paul Whelan,” the spokesman added. “Mr. Whelan has been unjustly imprisoned in Russia for over 4 years. Both men deserve to go home to their families now.”
Gershkovich is being held in Moscow’s Lefortovo Prison and was first detained on March 30 on suspicion of “espionage in the interest of the US government,” Russia’s Federal Security Service said in a statement reported by Russian state media. The Russian authorities have not provided any evidence to support the allegations.
During an interview with NBC’s Tom Llamas last week, Roger Carstens, the presidential special envoy for hostage-taking, said that “it remains to be seen” how recent events in Russia involving the Wagner mercenary group and Russian President Vladimir Putin will help Gershkovich’s case. to influence.
“If there’s one surprise I’ve had in this industry in the three and a half years I’ve been doing this job, it’s that the adversary is always willing to talk to us no matter the tension. And there have been times when we at odds with Russia, yet we managed to get a release from Trevor Reid and Brittney Griner,” Carstens said during a panel discussion at the Aspen Ideas Festival. “So my thinking is that while the Wagner group could bring some chaos and ambiguity into the system, I think we’ll still find a way to have this conversation and bring Evan home.”
Carstens noted that he believes Gershkovich’s case is likely to evolve “along the lines we saw with Brittney Griner, Trevor Reed and Paul Whelan.”
The Biden administration secured the release of Reed and Griner from Russia last year.
