The United States on Wednesday urged Russia to allow a consular visit with detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich to confirm his condition while a senior Russian official said Moscow was weighing access but would not be pressured. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Russia was considering granting U.S. diplomats consular access to Gershkovich, who has had only minimal contact with his legal team since his detention two weeks ago.
The United States on Monday determined that Russia had wrongfully detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and urged his immediate release. State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken "made a determination that Evan Gershkovich is wrongfully detained by Russia.