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First look at Gershkovich, Whelan after being freed in prisoner swap
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan were freed by Russia in a prisoner exchange.
Journalist Evan Gershkovich has been released as part of a major prisoner swap with Russia.
Gershkovich had been detained since early 2023, and was recently sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges after Russian prosecutors accused him of gathering information on behalf of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Gershkovich, his employer the Wall Street Journal, and the U.S. government denied the charges, saying he was doing his job as a journalist.
Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan was also released as part of the prisoner swap.
Here is what else to know about Gershkovich, a 32-year-old New Jersey native:
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Who is Evan Gershkovich?
According to his biography on the Wall Street Journal website, Gershkovich is a reporter who covers Russia, Ukraine and former nations of the Soviet Union.
Gershkovich was based in the Wall Street Journal’s Moscow bureau. The WSJ notes he had accreditation from the Russian Foreign Ministry to work as a journalist in the country. He speaks fluent Russian.
According to his WSJ bio, Gershkovich previously worked as a reporter for Agence France-Presse and the Moscow Times. He was also a news assistant at the New York Times.
When was Gershkovich arrested?
Gershkovich was arrested in March 2023.
The arrest occurred during a time of heightened tensions between the West and Russia over the war in Ukraine, as the Kremlin was cracking down on opposition activists, independent journalists and civil society groups, USA TODAY previously reported. Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Gershkovich was the first foreign journalist to be arrested in Russia since the start of the war in Ukraine.
On July 19, Gershkovich was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges. The WSJ said the U.S. has condemned the proceedings as a sham trial. The sentencing came unusually fast, flagging that a long-discussed prisoner swap may be in the works.
Gershkovich subject of first such arrest since Cold War
The last arrest of an American journalist in Russia came in September 1986, when U.S. News and World Report correspondent Nicholas Daniloff was arrested by the KGB. The Moscow-based journalist was released without charges 20 days later in a swap for an employee of the Soviet Union’s United Nations mission, who had been arrested by the FBI, USA TODAY previously reported.
After Gershkovich’s July sentencing, the White House said the president was “pushing hard” for his release.
“As I have long said and as the (United Nations) also concluded, there is no question that Russia is wrongfully detaining Evan. Journalism is not a crime,” Biden previously said. “…Evan has endured his ordeal with remarkable strength. We will not cease in our efforts to bring him home. And Jill and I are holding Evan and his family in our prayers.”
Contributing: Savannah Kuchar, USA TODAY
