(NewsNation) —Friday marks 100 days that Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has been detained by the Russian government.
The 31-year-old has been held in Moscow since March on charges of espionage, which he and the media outlet deny. The U.S. government declared him to be “wrongfully detained.”
“Every day that Evan isn’t home is another day too many. We miss our son and will not stop until he is free. We are so appreciative of all the support from around the world. It’s overwhelming, and we are grateful,” Gershkovich’s family wrote in a statement.
In a joint statement, The Wall Street Journal’s Editor-in-Chief Emma Tucker and CEO of Dow Jones Almar Latour said, “For the past 100 days, we have been deeply moved by the outpouring of support from around the world, including the journalism community and defenders of free press everywhere. It has never been more important to have reporters like Evan covering stories like Russia. We must now keep his own story front and center.”
Russia on Thursday announced it will allow the U.S. ambassador to Moscow to visit Gershkovish “on a reciprocal basis.”
“I think the fact that there’s access being given to the American ambassador, reciprocal access, the Foreign Ministry spokesman says that contacts are taking place,” former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson told NewsNation. “On the bad side, he’s detained until August 30. And you don’t know when there’s going to be a trial.”
Richardson emphasized the importance of addressing not only Gershkovich but also the case of U.S. Marine veteran Paul Whelan, who has been detained in Russia since 2018. He proposed addressing both cases as a package, suggesting that the resolution may involve the release of two or more Russians, not necessarily in the U.S.
The Kremlin on Tuesday held the door open for contacts with the U.S. regarding a possible prisoner exchange that could potentially involve Gershkovich, but reaffirmed that such talks must be held out of the public eye.
Asked whether Monday’s consular visits to Gershkovich and Vladimir Dunaev, a Russian citizen in U.S. custody on cybercrime charges, could potentially herald a prisoner swap, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow and Washington have touched on the issue.
“We have said that there have been certain contacts on the subject, but we don’t want them to be discussed in public,” Peskov said in a conference call with reporters. “They must be carried out and continue in complete silence.”
Gershkovich was arrested in the city of Yekaterinburg while on a reporting trip to Russia. He is being held at Moscow’s Lefortovo prison, notorious for its harsh conditions. A Moscow court last week upheld a ruling to keep him in custody until Aug. 30.
Gershkovich is the first American reporter to face espionage charges in Russia since September 1986, when Nicholas Daniloff, a Moscow correspondent for U.S. News and World Report, was arrested by the KGB. Daniloff was released 20 days later in a swap for an employee of the Soviet Union’s U.N. mission who was arrested by the FBI, also on spying charges.
The Associated Press and Margot Mather contributed to this report.