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[Text/Observer Network Zhang Jingjuan] Evan Gershkovich, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal who has been detained in Russia for more than a year on suspicion of "trying to obtain military secrets," will be interrogated on the 18th, nearly a month earlier than originally planned.

According to reports from Russia Today (RT) and Hong Kong's South China Morning Post, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said at a press conference held at the United Nations headquarters on the 17th that Russia has "conclusive evidence" that the journalist was involved in espionage. He also accused Western countries of "excessive" behavior against Russian media organizations and journalists after the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, for which Russia "had to fight back."

Lavrov said that the United States and Britain have long recruited journalists as spies. He also mentioned a memoir of a British journalist who had spied during the Russian Revolution in 1917, which was recently shared on the social platform "Telegram" by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova.

"At least in the Anglo-Saxon world, using journalists to gather intelligence is a tradition," Lavrov said.

Last week (July 9), the Media Freedom Coalition wrote in a statement signed by 25 countries including the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Spain and Italy that the trial of Gorshkevich was a deliberate attack on press freedom and called on Russia to release Gorshkevich.

In response, Lavrov emphasized at the press conference that Gorshkovich's arrest was not an attack on freedom of the press or speech, but because Russia had "conclusive evidence" that he was guilty of espionage. "I want to assure you that, like you, I support freedom of press reporting and speech."

Gershkovich, 32, is an editor of the Wall Street Journal's Moscow bureau. He was arrested in Yekaterinburg on March 30, 2023 on suspicion of "trying to obtain military secrets." The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) previously stated that it has been confirmed that Gershkovich collected state secrets on the activities of a Russian military-industrial enterprise in accordance with the instructions of the United States. The Russian Federal Security Service has filed a criminal case against him in accordance with Article 276 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (espionage).

Gershkevich, the Wall Street Journal and the US government have strongly denied the allegation. The US government has determined that Gershkevich was "wrongfully detained". At present, the Russian authorities have not made public any evidence.

Lavrov said Americans should not leave the case to public judgment, saying "it would not help". He also compared the strong US reaction to protesting the detention of Gorshkovich with the Russian government's response to Western countries expelling Russian journalists.

"When our journalists were expelled and media organizations were blocked, we initially chose not to respond. However, the actions of Western countries later went too far." Lavrov did not specify which actions were "too far", but he said Russia had taken retaliatory actions.

"It has taken some horrific, absolutely reckless actions and we have to fight fire with fire," he said.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the Russian court said that the trial of Gershkevich was originally scheduled for August 13, but was brought forward to July at the request of his defense team.

It is reported that in Russia, it is extremely rare for a spy case to be acquitted. If convicted, Gershkovich will face up to 20 years in prison.

However, Russian President Vladimir Putin previously stated that Russia would not refuse to release Gorshkovich, but the prisoner exchange plan must be acceptable to both sides.

The US State Department has also pointed out that the United States is conducting ongoing and cautious dialogue with Russia on the issue of prisoner exchange and will not negotiate in public.

Lavrov also revealed on the same day that the two countries were in contact on this matter.

It is worth mentioning that on May 23, former US President Trump posted on his self-created social media platform "Truth Social", claiming that Gorshkevich will be released immediately after his (November 5 US presidential) election, "Putin will do this for me, but not for anyone else, and we will not pay any price."

It is reported that the last time Russia and the United States exchanged prisoners was in December 2022, when Russia exchanged American women's basketball player Britney Griner, who was arrested on suspicion of drug smuggling in Russia, for Russian businessman Viktor Bout.

Politico recently reported that the number of Americans arrested in Russia has increased in recent years amid a clear deterioration in relations between the two countries.

Currently, several American citizens are being held in Russian prisons. In addition to Gershkovich, another media worker is Osu Kurmasheva, a reporter for the US government's foreign propaganda media "Radio Free Europe", who was arrested in October last year. In addition, in February this year, a woman with dual Russian and American citizenship was arrested in Yekaterinburg for "treason". In May, Gordon Black, an American soldier who was stationed in South Korea, was arrested in Vladivostok for stealing his Russian girlfriend's property and threatening to kill her.

This article is an exclusive article of Observer.com and may not be reproduced without authorization.