Joe Biden urges Russia to release US journalist accused of spying.

President Joe Biden has called on Russia to release Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter arrested on espionage charges and facing 20 years in jail. Russian officials continue to speak about Gershkovich in terms suggesting his conviction is a foregone conclusion. The Wall Street Journal has vehemently denied the charges against the 31-year-old reporter, and friends and colleagues of Gershkovich have described the accusations as ludicrous. Observers have suggested two possible motives for the arrest: to stifle critical reporting on Russia even further, and to take Gershkovich “hostage” as a bargaining chip for a possible future exchange for Russian spies caught in the west.