State Department designates WSJ reporter as ‘wrongfully detained’

The State Department on Monday officially designated an American reporter as “wrongfully detained” by Russia, after he was arrested in March on espionage charges.

“Today, Secretary Blinken made a determination that Evan Gershkovich is wrongfully detained by Russia,” State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said in a statement. “Journalism is not a crime. We condemn the Kremlin’s continued repression of independent voices in Russia, and its ongoing war against the truth.”

The new designation elevates Gershkovich’s case, sending it to a State Department office that specializes in negotiating the release of hostages and those wrongfully detained in other countries.