Russia on Thursday decided to imprison US Wall Street Journal reporter Ivan Gershkovich on suspicion of “espionage”, raising Washington’s “most concern” over the country’s modern history.

Who is Ivan Gershkovich?

He is a journalist of Russian origin, whose parents live in the United States.

Before starting her work at the American daily newspaper in 2022, Gershkovich was a correspondent for Agence France-Presse in Moscow and before that a journalist for the English-language Moscow Times.

The Russian Security Services (FSB) announced the arrest of the journalist in Yekaterinburg, in the Urals, on suspicion of “espionage,” and the Kremlin confirmed his involvement.

For his part, Russian-speaking reporter Gershkovich, known for his professionalism, denied the charges against him during a hearing in a Moscow court, Russian news agency TASS reported.

Confidential issue

The 31-year-old American journalist has been remanded in custody until May 29, the court said in a statement. The detention period may be extended pending a possible investigation.

According to the Itar-Tass news agency, the case is classified as “confidential”, which greatly restricts the publication of information about it.

The only details available at this point are the FSB’s announcement that Ivan Gershkovich was arrested on an unspecified date in Yekaterinburg, in the Urals region, “suppressing illegal activities.”

Russian security services suspect him of “espionage for the United States,” specifically accusing him of “gathering information about a company linked to the Russian military-industrial complex.”

According to Article 276 of the Russian Penal Code, this offense is punishable by twenty years in prison.

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