The Kremlin said Tuesday that US and Russian officials have touched base about a potential prisoner exchange that would trigger the release of imprisoned Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
Spokesman Dmitry Peskov made the revelation when asked if Washington and Moscow have discussed the possibility of swapping Gershkovich, who was detained in March on espionage charges, for Russian national Vladimir Dunaev, who is being held in the US for alleged cybercrimes.
“We have said that there have been certain contacts on the subject, but we don’t want them to be discussed in public,” Peskov told reporters. “They must be carried out and continue in complete silence.”
The flak for Russian President Vladimir Putin declined to disclose additional details on the matter.
Gershkovich, 31, was arrested by Russia’s Federal Security Service March 29 at a restaurant in the city of Yekanterinburg, about 800 miles east of Moscow. He is the first American journalist arrested on espionage charges in Russia since the conclusion of the Cold War.
Gershkovich, the US government and the Wall Street Journal have vehemently denied the Kremlin’s accusations and Moscow has declined to make public any evidence to back up its spying claims.
US Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy met with Gershkovich Monday at Lefortovo prison in Moscow and found him to be in good health, according to the State Department.
US officials had last talked with Gershkovich April 17, with Russia declining to provide additional access in the interim.
“US Embassy officials will continue to provide all appropriate support to Mr. Gershkovich and his family, and we expect Russian authorities to provide continued consular access,” a State Department spokesperson told The Post.
Last month, a Russian court spurned Gershkovich’s appeal for release and directed him to be held in custody through Aug. 30.
“On his country’s Independence Day, thinking especially today of our friend and brilliant colleague, Evan Gershkovich, who instead of being free is in a Russian prison for doing his job. He should be released immediately. #IStandWithEvan #FreeEvan,” Gráinne McCarthy, chief digital editor of Wall Street Journal International, tweeted Tuesday.
Officials at the State Department previously told the Journal that the most viable path for Gershkovich’s release would be through a prisoner swap.
US officials are also keen on securing former US Marine Paul Whelan’s release after he was detained in Russia in 2018 and convicted of espionage charges.
In December, President Biden set off controversy by approving a deal to release notorious international arms dealer Viktor Bout in exchange for WNBA star Brittney Griner, who had been imprisoned in Russia on drug charges.
Bout is now seeking political office in Russia.
