The United States concluded Monday that Russia is "arbitrarily detaining" Ivan Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, and urged Moscow to release him immediately.
The State Department's official decision in the case of Gershkovich, 31, who was arrested by Russian security services on March 29 and issued with unusual speed, reflects Washington's serious commitment to the case, the first time Moscow has accused an American journalist of espionage since the Soviet era.
Gershkovich was arrested in the Ural city of Ekaterinburg, about 1800,<> km east of Moscow. Russian news agencies reported Friday that he had been charged with espionage, which the American journalist and the newspaper denied, and the White House called it "absurd."
A statement by US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said Secretary Antony Blinken had concluded that Gershkovich was "arbitrarily detained" by Russia, adding: "We call on the Russian Federation to release Gershkovich immediately."
"Journalism is not a crime. We condemn the Kremlin's continued repression of independent voices in Russia, and the fight against truth."
Last week, Blinken told reporters he believed the arrest was unfair, suggesting the department would conclude Monday's decision.
In practice, the State Department's decision places Gershkovicz's arrest in the custody of U.S. special envoy for hostage affairs Rodger Carstens, expanding the range of resources that can be used in the case.
U.S. media, rights groups and officials condemned Gershkovicz's arrest, seen as a dangerous escalation of Moscow's crackdown on the media.
The Wall Street Journal, one of the most prominent newspapers in the United States, said it "strongly denies the allegations" against its "trusted and dedicated reporter."
Gershkovich, a correspondent for the Agence France-Presse in Moscow, is of Russian descent and fluent in Russian, and his parents live in the United States.