1 UNITED STATES/RUSSIA
Lavrov rejects US plea for release of journalist
Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, called for Russia to free the detained American journalist Evan Gershkovich in a rare phone call with his Moscow counterpart.
The American’s plea was rejected by Sergei Lavrov, who responded by saying that US officials and media outlets must “not make a fuss” or try to politicise the plight of the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reporter.
Gershkovich, 31, (below) was detained on Wednesday last week in the Urals city of Ekaterinburg and accused by Russia’s FSB internal security agency of collecting “classified information” about a company.
The WSJ says it “vehemently denies the allegations” and would campaign for his release, while experts said Russia might be trying to use the reporter as a hostage and bargaining chip.
However, Lavrov told Blinken the reporter “had been caught red-handed attempting to obtain classified information”, according to a statement from Russia’s ministry of foreign affairs. Gershkovich was collecting state secrets under journalistic cover, the Russian minister added.
No further evidence was offered in support of Lavrov’s assertion.
2 UNITED STATES
Intelligence from military sites ‘gathered by balloon’
A Chinese spy balloon gathered intelligence as it flew over sensitive military sites in the US, despite efforts by the White House to thwart its espionage mission, new reports suggest.
China succeeded in flying the massive balloon over some military
