Republican candidate Donald Trump assured that Evan Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal journalist imprisoned by the Kremlin in a Russian prison, will be released if he returns to the White House.
"Evan Gershkovich, the Reporter from the Wall Street Journal, who is being held by Russia, will be released almost immediately after the election, but definitely before I assume office. He will be home, safe, and with his family," the former president wrote on Truth Social.
Trump added that Russian President Vladimir Putin would only agree to release Gershkovich "for me, not for anyone else," without having to pay for his release.
However, Russia stated, in statements made by the Kremlin spokesperson and reported by Reuters, that it has "not had contacts" with Trump to organize the American journalist's release.
Russian authorities detained and subsequently imprisoned Gershkovich in March 2023, accusing him of working as a spy for the United States government. Both the Biden administration and the Wall Street Journal denied this criminal charge. Since then, the legal process against the journalist has continued.
