Russia detains US journalist on spying allegations

MOSCOW — Russian intelligence agencies has detained a US citizen employed by The Wall Street Journal's Moscow bureau.

Russian media reports that Evan Gershkovich was legally detained until May 29 while an inquiry was conducted after being charged with espionage in a Russian court.

The Russian Federal Security Services, FSB, detained Gershkovich when he was on a reporting assignment in the Ural mountain city of Yekaterinburg. They accused him of engaging in "illegal actions" on behalf of the United States government.

FSB said in a statement that Gershkovich, working on an assignment from the American side, had been "collecting information classified as a state secret regarding the activity of one of the enterprises of Russia's military-industrial complex

Several Russian military factories are located in the Urals mountain range.

On the other hand, the Wall Street Journal "vehemently denies the charges," the publication said in a statement.

In response to the conflict in Ukraine, Russia has passed a number of new, restrictive legislation pertaining to the media and information.