Russian authorities have detained an American reporter for the Wall Street Journal and accused him of spying.
Russia’s main security service, the FSB, claimed Thursday that Evan Gershkovich, a correspondent based in Moscow, had been trying to obtain state secrets. The Wall Street Journal categorically rejected those allegations.
A Russian district court in Moscow said Thursday that Gershkovich would be detained until May 29.
It is the first time an American journalist has been detained on accusations by Moscow of spying since the Cold War. It comes a week after US authorities announced charges against a Russian national, Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov, accusing him of being a Russian spy.