US journalist Evan Gershkovich still waiting for trial date after 250 days jailed in Russia

Despite being arrested and jailed in Russia for 250 days, the trial date for US journalist Evan Gershkovich is yet to be set amid another turn in relations between Washington and Moscow.

For most people, the arrest and jailing in Russia of US journalist Evan Gershkovich is another shocking twist in American-Russian relations.

For his family, friends and colleagues, it is something far more personal.

This week marks the grim milestone of 250 days in captivity for Gershkovich – but as the days tick by, a determined effort is under way to bring him home safely.

The 32-year-old is facing espionage charges after he was arrested while reporting in the city of Yekaterinburg by Russia’s Federal Security Service in the first case of its kind since the end of the Cold War.

His arrest and looming trial coincides with relations between the US and Russia being under the most strain in years, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

On Tuesday, a Moscow court extended Gershkovich’s detention by two more months until January 30. The hearing was held behind closed doors, and no press were allowed inside, although officials from the US embassy in Moscow were allowed access.

The White House has called the charges “ridiculous” while Gershkovich and the Wall St Journal have completely rejected them.

An appeal on his jailing ahead of the trial was denied by a Moscow court in September, and no date for the trial has been set.

If convicted, he faces 20 years behind bars.

US journalist Evan Gershkovich, arrested on espionage charges, stands inside a defendants' cage before a hearing to consider an appeal on his extended pre-trial detention at the Moscow City Court in Moscow on October 10, 2023. Picture: Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP

US Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy was in court when the appeal was rejected and later said Gershkovich was “fully aware of the gravity of his situation”.

“Yet he remains remarkably strong,” she said.

There is a suspicion in the US that Russia sees high profile prisoners like Gershkovich as an opportunity to trade high value Russians in American prisons.

Gershkovich was accredited to work in Russia but few details of his case are known. The Kremlin has insisted he was caught “red-handed” trying to obtain state secrets, but has offered no proof of the claims.

Jason Conti, general counsel for Dow Jones & Co (publisher of the WSJ) said he expected another three month extension to his detention.

“Then at some point early in the year we hope at least there will be a trial,” Mr Conti said.

Ms Tracy said Gershkovich kept his mind sharp by playing chess with his father, Mikhail, through the mail.

Mikhail said the jailing of journalists for doing their job had to stop.

“The normalisation of arresting journalists and using them in this game is absolutely horrible,” he said.

“Not only for journalism but for democracy and the world.”

The release of Australian-Chinese journalist Cheng Lei provided the family some hope.

“Hope is something that we have to have,” he said.

Gershkovich’s mother Ella Milman said they had no choice but to stay strong for him.

Lefortovo prison, where he is being kept, is infamous for its isolating conditions.

“We are holding up, we have no other choice. We need to fight for Evan,” she said.

Their son was also trying to stay calm and strong. He was doing as much as possible to “keep mentally strong, physically strong”.

“It’s a lot of hard work,” Ms Milman said.

The parents of detained Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich: his father Mikhail and mother Ella Milman speaking in Washington. Picture: Sophie Elsworth

She explained the journey from being a reporter in the US to working in Russia – a “dream job” that soured just 15 months later.

“Evan was always a curious child, very curious, trying to learn and he was interested about his roots, his Russian roots. In college he kind of discovered what his passion is – journalism. He wrote for the college paper,” Ms Milman said.

“He decided to use his Russian skills to become a reporter, he took a risk and left his comfortable job at The New York Times.”

His language skills were a huge asset while he was working in Russia, she said.

“He would go into a rural area and meet the translators and video crew and manage to get to know them and talk to them, and I think that’s one of his qualities.”

They got weekly letters from Evan and kept in regular contact with his legal team and Ambassador Tracy.

Wall St Journal assistant editor Paul Beckett’s role has become one of trying to find ways to bring Gershkovich home.

“As a colleague Evan is viewed as one of the young star reporters at the Wall St Journal and we can’t wait for him to come back,” Mr Beckett said.

“This isn’t something that we’ve faced before. We haven’t had a situation like this before – it will be 250 days on December 4.”

He said the espionage charges were “really bogus”.

“There isn’t much to investigate,” he said, noting protecting journalists’ right to work was something that needed vigilance around the globe.

“I think it is going to take democracies all over the world to stand up and talk about the importance of the free press,” Mr Beckett said.

Just days before his shock arrest, Gershkovich’s byline appeared on a story that detailed how the Russian economy was falling apart as Ukraine war dragged on with no end in sight.

President Biden has said the process of trying to free Gershkovich was under way.

“We’re serious about doing what we can to free Americans who are being illegally held in Russia or anywhere else for that matter,” Mr Biden said.

Russian officials have hinted they have been in contact with their US counterparts regarding a prisoner transfer, but the case against Gershkovich would have to run its course first, The New York Times reported.

And with a trial expected to take up to three months and no date set for it to begin, the nightmare for Gershkovich, his family and colleagues looks set to last well in 2024.