WASHINGTON
\nThe United States on Thursday condemned Russia\u2019s detention of an American journalist writing for The Wall Street Journal and said it was seeking consular access.
\nUS officials said they were in touch with the family of detained journalist Evan Gershkovich as well as the newspaper and that the State Department had contacted Russia.
\n\u201cThe targeting of American citizens by the Russian government is unacceptable. We condemn the detention of Mr Gershkovich in the strongest terms,\u201d White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.
\n\u201cI want to strongly reiterate that Americans should heed the US government\u2019s warning to not travel to Russia. US citizens residing or travelling in Russia should depart immediately.\u201d
\nReacting to the accusation that the journalist was spying, Jean-Pierre later told reporters, \u201cThe charge of espionage is ridiculous.\u201d
\nPresident Joe Biden had been briefed on the detention, the White House said.
\nSecretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement connected the detention to the crackdown on media in Russia, whose relations with Washington have nosedived since the invasion of Ukraine.
\n\u201cIn the strongest possible terms, we condemn the Kremlin\u2019s continued attempts to intimidate, repress, and punish journalists and civil society voices,\u201d Blinken said.
\nGershkovich is believed to be the first foreign journalist to be detained on suspicion of spying in post-Soviet Russia.
\nWhite House national security spokesman John Kirby said he understood that journalists must take risks and do so knowingly.
\n\u201cWe respect that, but it doesn\u2019t change our deep concern about the presence of Americans\u201d still in Russia, Kirby told reporters.
\nSeveral other US citizens are in jail including Paul Whelan, a former Marine, who was arrested in 2018 and handed a 16-year sentence on espionage charges that he denies.
\n\u201cThis is not a new tactic for Mr Putin and for Russian officials to detain foreigners and particular Americans,\u201d Kirby said.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s certainly not new for Mr Putin to strike back against a free and independent press,\u201d he said.
\nWhelan\u2019s brother voiced sorrow over Gershkovich\u2019s detention and called on the Biden administration to prioritize releasing detained Americans.
\n\u201cWhatever it takes, I hope the US government moves quickly and decisively so that Paul and Mr Gershkovich can return to their families and loved ones soon,\u201d David Whelan said in a statement.
\nRussia and the United States, despite high tensions, have carried out recent prisoner swaps including one that led to the release of US basketball star Brittney Griner.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON The United States on Thursday condemned Russia\u2019s detention of an American journalist writing for The Wall Street Journal and said it was seeking consular access. US officials said they were in touch with the family of detained journalist Evan Gershkovich as well as the newspaper and that the State Department had contacted Russia. \u201cThe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-323097","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n