LOS ANGELES.–Sentenced to 16 years July 19 in Yakersinburg, 1,200 miles east of Moscow, for spying, 32-year-old Wall Street Journal reporters Evan Gershkovich has little hope of getting out of Russian custody anytime soon with 81-year-old President Joe Biden prosecuting a proxy war against the Kremlin. All but wrecking U.S-Russian relations since taking office January 20, 2021, Biden can’t stop himself from insulting 71-year-old Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling him a “murderous madman” at the July 9-11 Washington, D.C. NATO conference. Biden has done everything possible since taking office to insult Putin and Chinese President Xi Jimping. “This is a disgraceful sham conviction comes after Evan has spent 478 days in prison, wrongfully detained, away from his family and friends, prevented from report all for doing his job as a journalist,” said WSJ publisher Almar Latour and Editor-in-Chief Emma Tucker in a press release.
Latour and Tucker know that their insulting words do nothing to get Evan out of Russian jail and may, in fact, extend his stay for an indefinite period. Wall Street Journal [WSJ] claims that Gerskowitch was a credentialed journalist by the Russian government when he was arrested by the Federal Security Service [FSB, formerly KGB] March 29, 2023, prompting the WSJ to denounce the Russian government, calling the arrest, trial and sentencing a sham. “We will continue to do everything possible to press for Evan’s release and to support his family. Journalism is not a crime, and we will not rest until he’s released. This must end now,” said the WSJ, knowing that they’re probably making Evan’s release less likely. White House officials do nothing to resolve the Ukraine War that makes prisoner swaps less likely. Former President Donald Trump, 78, said he would get Gershkowich out when he takes office.
Biden continues to fund the proxy war in Ukraine with the Kremlin, saying he would degrade the Russian military to the point it can no longer wage war. If that’s not a declaration of war on Russia, then what is? Biden’s vendetta dates back to the Obama administration when as Vice President he and Obama funded proxy war against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, causing over 500,000 deaths, driving 15 millions Syrians into exile and nearly breaking the European Union. When Putin decided to save al-Assad in 2015, Obama and Biden’s proxy war was spoiled. Biden was Vice President Feb. 22, 2014 when he authorized a CIA-backed coup in Kiev, driving duly elected, Kremlin-backed Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych out of Kiev. Putin decided March 1, 2014 to annex the Crimea Peninsula, actually taking Ukrainian sovereign territory on Obama and Biden’s watch. Trump pointed out that not an inch of sovereign land was taken during his four years in office.
Biden’s vendetta runs deep coloring everything he does including funding proxy war that has practically leveled Ukraine, taking at least 20% more Ukrainian territory especially around the Black Sea coast. Yet Biden continues only one approach of funding proxy war against the Kremlin. Trump told Zelensky that things would change once he wins the presidency in November, working hard with Putin for a diplomatic solution. Zelensky won’t be able to reject Trump’s peace overture like he’s done with every other peace plan over the last two-and-half-years of war. Biden and Zelensky were told by their top generals that there is no military solution to the Ukraine War yet continue to beat a dead horse. Trump would engage Putin in diplomacy to find a mutually beneficial fix to the conflict. Biden does nothing other than promote more death and destruction.
Biden knows with his proxy war with the Kremlin he can’t get any American citizens currently detained in Russia jails out. Only by ending the war can Biden expect Russian officials to come around and negotiate a reasonable prisoner swaps to get out Gershkowitz and former marine and security executive Paul Whelan. All recent attempts through State Department back channels to get Gershkowitz, Whelan and others out of Russian jails have failed. Whelan has become disillusioned with Biden’s efforts to get him out of jail, after watching 33-year-old WNBA star Brittney Griner get out of jail Dec. 8, 2022. Early on in the Ukraine War, Putin let the back channels do the work for a prisoner swap before realizing that Biden was trying to degrade the Russian military. Once Putin knew the Ukraine War was between the U.S. and Moscow, cooperation ended.
Putin made clear March 8 with his 90-minute Kremlin interview with former Fox News journalist Tucker Carlson that he was open to ending the conflict and improving U.S.-Russian relations. Biden has done nothing other than promote more war giving Ukraine a blank check and unlimited lethal weapons to attack the Russian Federation. Recent Ukrainian attacks have crossed the border into Russia, violating Biden’s original terms of giving Ukraine offensive weapons. “We would welcome them engaging seriously with us to obtain the release of Evan Gershkowitch and Paul Whelan, but so far we have see them refuse to take us up on our proposals, and we hope that they will change the way they’ve handled going forward,” said State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller. State Department officials know the Ukraine War must end before anything gets done.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
