Russia discusses prisoner swaps with the US

Kremlin spokesman was asked about possible exchanges in light of consular visits to Evan Gershkovich and a Russian held in the US.

Evan Gershkovich at his last court appearance in Moscow on June 22. Picture: AFP

Russia is in contact with the US regarding prisoner swaps, the Kremlin said after consular visits to Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in detention in Russia and a Russian held in the US.

Dmitry Peskov overnight on Tuesday was asked to comment on the possibility of a prisoner exchange in light of recent visits to Gershkovich and Vladimir Dunaev, according to reports of the briefing on Russian state media.

“There are certain contacts in this regard but we do not want to make them public in any way,” Mr Peskov said. “They must continue in complete silence.”

Gershkovich, 31, an American citizen accredited by Russia’s Foreign Ministry to work as a journalist, was detained by agents from the FSB security service while on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg on March 29.

He is being held on an allegation of espionage that he, the WSJ and the US government vehemently deny.

Washington says Gershkovich is not a spy and has never worked for the government. The Biden administration has designated him wrongfully detained, a status that commits the government to securing his release.

“While we unfortunately do not have a breakthrough to share, we continue to pursue every avenue to secure the release of Evan Gershkovich and fellow American Paul Whelan,” a White House official said on Tuesday.

The special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, Roger Carstens, said last week the US had been in contact with Russia over the reporter’s case and would continue to try to find ways to work for his release, but Russian officials had signalled they weren’t willing to engage.

A State Department spokesperson declined on Tuesday to go into detail on the negotiations, citing continuing work to secure the release of Gershkovich and Mr Whelan, another American considered wrongfully detained in Russia.

On Monday, the US ambassador to Russia was granted access to Gershkovich, following weeks of repeated US requests to meet with him. It was the second such visit since the journalist’s detention began.

Lynne Tracy visited Gershkovich at Moscow’s Lefortovo prison a little over a week after a court upheld a request from the FSB to extend the reporter’s detention to at least August 30 while he awaits trial. Gershkovich’s lawyers had appealed the FSB’s request.

Russian diplomats have visited Mr Dunaev, in US custody on cybercrime charges, Russian media reported on Tuesday.

Russian officials have previously hinted at the possibility of a deal for the journalist but said any consideration of a swap involving Gershkovich would have to wait until a court issued a verdict in his case.

A prisoner exchange between US and Russia has long been seen by American observers and officials as the likeliest way of securing the reporter’s freedom, particularly after two instances last year in which Americans whom the US considered to be wrongfully detained in Russia were swapped for Russians convicted of crimes in the US.

American basketballer Brittney Griner, convicted of drug charges, was exchanged for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. Trevor Reed, an American convicted in Russia of assaulting two police officers, was swapped for Konstantin Yaroshenko, who had been sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2011 for conspiracy to smuggle cocaine into the US.

Legal experts say it could be many months before Gershkovich’s case is brought to trial, as investigators gather materials to present before a judge. Under Russian law, investigators and prosecutors have wide latitude to request further extensions of pretrial detention. Espionage trials are typically conducted in secret, as in most countries, and conviction carries a prison sentence of 10 to 20 years. It is rare for a court to acquit a defendant.

The US has been grappling with a rise in hostage diplomacy, where foreign governments seeking to extract concessions detain Americans on what the US deems trumped-up charges.

The Wall Street Journal