US ambassador and Russian diplomat discuss arrested reporter

The Associated Press

The U.S ambassador to Russia and a top Russian diplomat have met to discuss a Wall Street Journal reporter who was arrested last week on espionage charges. The Russian Foreign Ministry said Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov stressed to Ambassador Lynne Tracy “the serious nature of the charges” against American journalist Evan Gershkovich. The ministry alleged on Thursday that “the hype” in the United States surrounded Gershkovich’s March 29 arrest is a “hopeless and senseless” attempt to pressure Russian authorities and the Moscow court hearing the case. Russia’s Federal Security Service has accused the 31-year-old reporter of trying to obtain classified information about a Russian arms factory. The Journal has denied the accusations.