Russia Rejects Offer To Release Jailed U.S. Citizens, State Dept Says

Russia has recently rejected a fresh proposal to secure the release of wrongfully detained U.S. citizens including journalist Evan Gershkovich, the State Department said on Tuesday, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.

Speaking to reporters during daily briefing, spokesperson Matthew Miller said Moscow rejected a 'substantial' offer to free the Wall Street Journal reporter as well as fellow American detainee Paul Whelan.

He offered no further details on what exactly Washington had offered Moscow in exchange for the pair's release.

Gershkovich was the first American journalist to be detained in Russia since the Cold War, and his arrest came as U.S.-Russia tensions have skyrocketed amid the war in Ukraine.

In October, Russia arrested RFERL reporter Alsu Kurmasheva, who is Russian-American. Washington is yet to designate her wrongfully detained but is continuing to look at her case, Miller told TURAN's correspondent.