U.S. President Joe Biden has met privately with the parents of American journalist Evan Gershkovich, who has been detained by Russia on espionage charges.
The president and first lady Jill Biden met with Ella and Mikhail Gershkovich on April 29 ahead of an annual gala dinner in Washington hosted by the White House Correspondents' Association.
Details of the conversation were not released, but Biden mentioned the meeting during his speech to an estimated audience of 2,600 people, including some guests wearing buttons reading “Free Evan.”
Gershkovich, a Moscow-based reporter for The Wall Street Journal, has been imprisoned in Russia since March on the spying charges, which he, his newspaper, and the U.S. government have strongly denied.
Also among the guests at the dinner was Debra Tice, the mother of freelance journalist Austin Tice, who disappeared at a checkpoint in Syria in 2012. Although he has not been heard from since, U.S. officials say they operate under the assumption that he is alive and are working to bring him home.
Biden mentioned both these journalists and Paul Whelan, another American detained in Russia, in his speech as he emphasized the importance of freedom of the press.
“Journalism is not a crime," Biden said. “Evan and Austin should be released immediately along with every other American detained abroad.” He said: “I promise you, I am working like hell to get them home.”
Biden also noted the presence of Brittney Griner, the U.S. women’s basketball star and Olympic gold medalist who was detained in Russia for nearly 10 months before her release in December in a prisoner swap.
“This time last year we were praying for you, Brittney," said Biden, who mixed the serious topic of the detained Americans with a light-heartedness as he took jabs at political critics and joked about his age.
Biden, 80, the oldest U.S. president in history, announced his campaign for reelection on April 25.
Vice President Kamala Harris also attended the dinner, which brings together government officials, Washington-based journalists, and celebrities. The event returned last year after being sidelined by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.