▸ It was in March 2023 that the American journalist Evan Gershkovich was arrested by the Russian security service. Now, just over a year later, he has been convicted of espionage, in what many describe as a mock trial. He thus becomes the first Western journalist to be convicted of espionage in Russia since the Cold War. The trial has been described as unusually swift and some experts say it suggests a prisoner exchange may be in the offing. In the past, we have seen examples of how Russia seizes foreign nationals to be used as pawns in a political game. Vladimir Putin has previously hinted that there is an exchange possibility with the convicted FSB agent Vadim Krasikov. Will Evan Gershkovich be used in a prisoner exchange? What consequences can the prison sentence have in the future? And how does the increasingly harsh dictatorship affect freedom of expression in Russia? Guest: Maria Georgieva, longtime Russia correspondent and friend of Evan. Producer and presenter: Olivia Bengtsson. Clips: BBC, GLOBAL NEWS, CBS
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Evan Gershkovich and the Russian prison sentence
