washington —
The White House said Thursday that it is preparing a new proposal to Russia to secure the release of journalist Evan Gershkovich and another jailed American.
“We’re working hard to see what we can do to get another proposal that might be more successful,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. The Kremlin rejected a previous proposal.
Wall Street Journal reporter Gershkovich has been imprisoned since March on espionage charges that he, his employer and the U.S. government vehemently deny. Gershkovich’s jailing underscores Moscow’s years-long crackdown on press freedom, experts say.
The other American is Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine who was arrested in Moscow in 2018 and is currently serving a 16-year sentence on spying charges that he and the U.S. government deny.
“We’re always heartened to see signs that the government is working on Evan and Paul’s release. We hope very much that those efforts will bear fruit soon,” Paul Beckett, an assistant editor at the Journal, told VOA. Beckett is leading the newspaper’s campaign to secure Gershkovich’s release.
The news from the White House came one day after Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington is “very actively working” on securing the release of Gershkovich and Whelan.
“With regard to Russia and Evan and Paul Whelan, all I can say is this: We are very actively working on it, and we will leave no stone unturned to see if we can’t find the right way to get them home, and to get them home as soon as possible,” Blinken said during a year-end news conference on Wednesday.
The State Department said earlier this month that Russia rejected a “substantial” proposal to free Gershkovich and Whelan.
Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow wants “to reach an agreement” with Washington on the release of Gershkovich and Whelan.
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