Kremlin denies Vladimir Putin personally approved arrest of WSJ reporter

Russia said on Thursday that a prisoner swap involving Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is only possible after he is put on trial. The reporter was detained in Russia late last month on espionage charges. "The question of exchanging anyone can be considered after the court delivers its verdict specifically on this or that charge," Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying by the TASS news agency.

"As for an exchange, we have a special channel for this, the security services deal with it, and they will continue to deal with this matter," he said.

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) says that Gershkovich was caught red-handed. Meanwhile, Kremlin has denied that President Vladimir Putin personally approved his arrest.

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"No, it is not the president's prerogative, it is the special services', who are doing their job. Once again, I would like to remind you that this journalist was caught red-handed," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

The FSB has accused Gershkovich of gathering classified information about a military factory. Both WSJ and the United States have rejected the claim as false.

Also Read |Kremlin says WSJ reporter 'violated' Russian law after US designates detention 'wrongful'

On Wednesday, Washington's hostage envoy pledged to do "whatever it takes" to bring Gershkovich and ex-Marine Paul Whelan home. Whelan is another US citizen detained in Russia. Washington has pressed Moscow to grant consular access to the WSJ reporter.

The US State Department, on Monday, officially designated Gershkovich as having been "wrongfully detained" by Russia. Responding to the announcement, Kremlin said on Tuesday that he had "violated Russian law" and been caught "red-handed".

Being officially designated as "wrongfully detained" means that the US believes he was targeted primarily because he is an American citizen.

The White House and other Western countries have widely condemned the charges as bogus. The Wall Street Journal, dozens of media organisations and human rights groups have also slammed Russia for the arrest.

(With inputs from agencies)

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