The American journalist has been awaiting trial for nearly a yr after being charged with espionage in March of 2023.
“We have done so many gestures of goodwill, out of decency, that I think we have run out of them,” Putin stated after the previous Fox News host requested on the finish of a prolonged, usually rambling interview if he’d be prepared to launch Gershkovich again to the US.
Putin stated that he believes an settlement between the US and Russia relating to Gershkovich’s launch will be reached and that the 2 international locations have been in discussions.
“At the end of the day, it does not make any sense to keep him in prison in Russia,” Putin stated.
“We are ready to talk. Moreover, the talks are underway, and there have been many successful examples of these talks crowned with success. Probably, this is going to be crowned with success as well,” Putin continued, including that he needs Gershkovich to “return to his hometown.”
While Putin stated he wouldn’t rule out Gershkovich’s launch, he appeared to double down on charging the journalist with espionage.
“If a person gets secret information and does that in a conspiratorial manner, then this is qualified as espionage,” Putin stated, including that Gershkovich “was caught red-handed” receiving “classified, confidential information.”
Dow Jones, The Journal, and Gershkovich have denied these claims. The US State Department designated Gershkovich as “wrongfully detained” in April.
“It is chilling and outrageous that Evan has now spent 10 months of his life in prison, simply for doing his job,” Dow Jones and the Journal stated in January, including that they “demand Evan’s immediate release.”
Gershkovich was detained by Russia’s Federal Security Service on March 29 whereas on a reporting journey, The Journal reported.
In 2020, Paul Whelan, a former US Marine, was sentenced to 16 years in jail after Russia charged him with espionage.