The F.S.B., the successor agency to the K.G.B., claims that Gershkovich was collecting classified information, but Russian law makes it possible to prosecute someone for espionage for using publicly available information conversely, simply obtaining information, without sharing it with anyone, can be a crime. Contrary to popular perception and common sense, in Russia, “espionage” does not need to mean working for a foreign intelligence service or even a foreign government-under the 2012 definition, espionage can include gathering information for any foreign organization the Russian government sees as threatening the security of the country. In 2012, as Vladimir Putin cracked down in the wake of mass protests, Russia broadened the definition of espionage so that reporting and other professional activities could be interpreted as spying. Under Russian law, it may indeed be evidence. Ordinary journalistic activity-indeed, the ordinary details of a young American man’s life-are recast as evidence of espionage. He travelled to Tallinn in 2019, ostensibly to write a story on Estonian politics-“Was he meeting his handlers from the Center? We’ll see what investigators have to say about this.” He has a Web site on which he lists publications he has written for but no biographical details-“Did he have something to hide?” the article asks. ![]() He advanced in his career suspiciously fast. He played soccer in high school and college, which suggested that he is physically fit, which, in turn, made him a desirable recruit for a spy outlet. somewhere in Asia-this must have been a cover for an intelligence organization. In the year after college, he worked for an environmental N.G.O. At Bowdoin, he majored in philosophy, not journalism-this, the newspaper implied, meant that he is not a real journalist. Another article was titled “An Ideal American Spy: What Doesn’t Add Up in the Career of Evan Gershkovich.” This piece listed facts about Gershkovich, making each appear sinister or at least suspicious. ![]() “The FSB Has Nabbed a Wall Street Journal Reporter: He was Collecting Information on Russian Military Industry,” one headline proclaimed. The Canadian pair was set free hours after a deal was struck to release Ms Meng.In the course of a few days, Komsomolskaya Pravda, one of the most widely read newspapers in Russia, published no fewer than two dozen items on Evan Gershkovich, the American journalist being held in Moscow on charges of espionage. She was accused of "supplying state secrets overseas".ĭays after Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada in 2018, China detained two Canadians - former diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor.īeijing was accused of using the two men in a bout of "hostage diplomacy" to pressure Ottawa into releasing Ms Meng. In 2019, Chinese-born Australian writer Yang Hengjun was arrested on allegations of spying.Īustralia called last week for another one of its nationals - jailed journalist Cheng Lei - to be reunited with her family after 1,000 days in detention. Several high-profile cases of foreigners being detained have damaged ties between China and Western countries over the past few years. ![]() In February, a Japanese man was sentenced to 12 years in prison in China for espionage, according to Kyodo News. The diplomat was released after a few hours of questioning, the Japanese foreign ministry said last year. The same month, authorities formally charged a prominent Chinese journalist with spying, more than a year after he was detained while having lunch with a Japanese diplomat, a media rights group said.ĭong Yuyu, a senior columnist at the Communist Party newspaper Guangming Daily, was detained in February 2022 along with the diplomat at a Beijing restaurant, according to a statement issued by his family and seen by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). ![]() In April, China approved an amendment to its anti-espionage law, broadening its scope by widening the definition of spying and banning the transfer of any data related to what the authorities define as national security. The jailing is likely to further damage China's relations with Washington, which are already severely strained. Such heavy sentences are relatively rare for foreign citizens in China. The court statement provided no further details on the charges. Closed-door trials are routine in China for sensitive cases. The US embassy in Beijing did not immediately reply to an AFP request for comment. Suzhou authorities "took compulsory measures according to the law" against Mr Leung in April 2021, the statement said, without specifying when he had been taken into custody. John Shing-wan Leung, an American passport holder and Hong Kong permanent resident, "was found guilty of espionage, sentenced to life imprisonment deprived of political rights for life", a statement from the Intermediate People's Court in the eastern city of Suzhou said on Monday.
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