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Jailed journalist Evan Gershkovich is set to be released in a high-profile prisoner swap between Russia and the US.
The exchange would mark the largest prison exchange between the two countries since the Cold War.
First detained in March 2023, Mr Gershkovich has been unable to return home for over a year. He was sentenced to 16 years in Russian prision last month on charges of spying and espionage.
The allegations have been routinely denied by US authorities alongside the American journalist and the Wall Street Journal, which employs him.
He was detained while working on a report of Russia’s economy, and accused of attempting to collect classified information about a Russian battle tank manufacturer.
Mr Gershkovich has now been in Russian custody for nearly 500 days, with the latest news being the first glimpse of hope for his release.
Here’s a timeline of Mr Gerskovich’s arrest and time in Russian prison:
March 29, 2023
Mr Gerskovich is detained in Yekaterinburg by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) and then taken to Moscow. This was despite being accredited by the country’s Foreign Ministry to work as a journalist.
He was reporting on the financial cost on the Russian economy from Putin’s invasion of Ukraine at the time.
April 7, 2023
The FSB formally charges Mr Gerskovich with espionage and orders he be held in custody until May 29. The journalist denies the allegations, alongside the WSJ and the Biden administration.
April 10, 2023
The US State Department declares Mr Gerskovich to be wrongfully detained. The rare intervention was seen as an attempt by the Biden administration to put pressure on Russian officials to drop the charges.
Four days later, the journalist’s family receive their first direct contact from him: a handwritten letter dated April 5.
April 18, 2023
Mr Gerskovich’s detention is upheld by a Moscow Court. He is denied bail and ordered to be held in Lefortovo prison before his trial. The location has be known to be used to house political prisoners in the past.
US ambassador to Russia, Lynne M. Tracy, was allowed to meet with the journalist the day before, saying that he was “in good health and remains strong.”
May 23, 2023
A Russian court extends Mr Gerskovich’s pre-trial detenton. His parents travel to Moscow for the hearing, telling press: “Any parent who loves their kid would travel to the end of the world to be with them for five minutes”.
This would mark only the first extension. His pre-trial detention was extended again in August 2023 for three months, and for two more in November 2023. It would not be until June 2024 that the trial takes place.
March 29, 2024
Joe Biden releases a statement to mark the on year anniversay of Mr Gerskovich’s detention. He says his administration “will continue working every day to secure his release”.
“We will continue to denounce and impose costs for Russia’s appalling attempts to use Americans as bargaining chips”, he adds. “And we will continue to stand strong against all those who seek to attack the press or target journalists—the pillars of free society.”
October 26, 2023
Mr Gerskovich turns 32 in prison. Friends send him around 300 pages worth of letters from well-wishers, the WSJ reports.
June 26 and July 18, 2024
The WSJ journalist appears in a Russian court for his trial on two dates. On July 19, he is found guilty of spying and espionage, and sentenced to 16 years in prison.
August 1, 2024
Reports indicate that Mr Gershkovich could be included in a high-profile prisoner swap between Russia and the US.
