President Joe Biden (D) recently stated that he is “serious” about arranging a prisoner swap for detained Wall Street Journal reporter, Evan Gershkovich, according to reports by Politico. However, upon the initial announcement surrounding his imprisonment, Representative Cory Mills (R-FL) said he was "disappointed" in the Biden administration's handling of hostage situations. The Floridian has asked Rep. Mills about the recent comments from President Biden, and whether he has confidence that the White House can successfully get Gershkovich home.
Gershkovich is the son of Russian (then Soviet) parents who fled Communist rule to live in New Jersey.
He faces a prison sentence of up to 20 years for espionage. According to the Journal, this is the first time an espionage case has been brought to an overseas reporter since the Cold War.
Rep. Mills, who sits on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, mentioned that “Vladimir Putin is unfairly holding an American hostage to advance his anti-American agenda.”
“Like many others, I am calling for the Kremlin to immediately release Gershkovich for his wrongful imprisonment. Vladimir Putin is unfairly holding an American hostage to advance his anti-America agenda. Under this administration, our adversaries feel emboldened to act against our journalists,” stated Rep. Mills in April.
The 31-year-old American journalist is being held in the same Federal Security Bureau (the modern KGB) Lefortovo prison that U.S. Marine Paul Whelan was originally held in.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Gershkovich tweeted last July that “Reporting on Russia is now also a regular practice of watching people you know get locked away for years.”
reporting on Russia is now also a regular practice of watching people you know get locked away for years
— Evan Gershkovich (@evangershkovich) July 12, 2022
He has been detained in Russia since March.
