MOSCOW, April  6, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Russia's foreign ministry said Thursday
it was "pointless" to try to pressure Moscow over its case against US
journalist Evan Gershkovich, who is being held in Russia on suspicion of
espionage.

 "Hype around this case, which is being fanned in the United States, with
the aim of pressuring Russian authorities and the court... is pointless and
meaningless," Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told US
ambassador Lynne Tracy, according to a statement.

 The statement said Ryabkov pointed to the "serious nature of the charges"
against Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal who previously
worked for AFP in Moscow.

 "He was caught red-handed while trying to obtain secret information, using
his journalistic status as a cover for illegal actions, qualifying as
espionage," the statement added.

 Gershkovich was detained in Yekaterinburg, some 1,800 kilometres (1,100
miles) east of Moscow, then transferred to the capital and placed in detention
until May 29 pending trial.

 Both the Wall Street Journal and the reporter deny the charges.

 US President Joe Biden has called for Gershkovich's release with the White
House calling the accusations against him "ridiculous".

The 31-year-old is believed to be the first foreign journalist arrested on
spying allegations since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

 His arrest has drawn outrage from the West and is seen as a serious
escalation of Moscow's crackdown on media.