Trump Again Claims Evan Gershkovich Will Be Freed If He Wins Election

Donald Trump on Wednesday repeated his claim that jailed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is currently standing trial in Russia on espionage charges, will be released if the former president takes back the White House in the upcoming election.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump blamed President Joe Biden for the fact that Gershkovich remains in Russian custody more than a year after he was detained in Yekaterinburg.

“Crooked Joe can’t do anything right, although it is likely that he will pay $BILLIONS, which continues a very bad ‘Biden Precedent,’ to get Evan home,” Trump wrote, adding that his own administration freed hostages from various countries for “next to nothing.”

Trump also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin, the authoritarian leader he has repeatedly praised, does not hold Biden in high regard, suggesting that this has hurt the journalist’s case.

“Putin has no respect for Biden - and that’s the way it goes!!!” Trump said. “Fear not, Evan, I will get you home soon, and you will be safe while there!!!”

This is not the first time that Trump has commented on the case, recently writing that Putin would release Gershkovich “for me, but not for anyone else.”

Despite his claims, it’s unclear how Trump would speedily manage to secure Gershkovich’s release.

While Putin has previously indicated he would be open to a prisoner swap for the journalist, it appears there’s been little progress on the issue as Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday that “this topic likes silence.”

“We know that this topic is very high-profile in the United States, but it is not so high-profile inside our country,” Peskov said, according to The Washington Post. “The investigation is underway, the trial is underway, and we must wait for the verdict to be delivered.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Gershkovich was seen by reporters in court for a few minutes ahead of the start of his trial, which took place behind closed doors. Court officials announced that a next hearing will take place Aug. 13. If convicted, Gershkovich could face up to 20 years behind bars.

Almar Latour, the publisher of the Journal, and Emma Tucker, the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, decried the trial as “shameful and illegitimate,” and called for Gershkovich’s “immediate release.”

“While we are told he’s doing well given the circumstances, Evan’s wrongful detention continues to be a devastating assault on his freedom and his work and an unfathomable attack on the free press,” they said in a statement. “It’s outrageous that he has already endured 455 days in prison when he never should’ve been arrested.”

Gershkovich was arrested on March 29, 2023, in Yekaterinburg while on a reporting trip, becoming the first American journalist to be detained on espionage charges since the Cold War. Gershkovich, the U.S. and the Journal all deny the charges.

Gershkovich has been designated as wrongfully detained by the U.S. State Department.