FILE - Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine who was arrested on espionage charges, listens to the verdict in court in Moscow, Russia, June 15, 2020. The U.S. Ambassador told Russia’s foreign minister on Tuesday that President Vladimir Putin should release detained Americans, singling out Whelan and journalist Evan Gershkovich and accusing the Russian leader of continuing to treat “human beings as bargaining chips.” (Sofia Sandurskaya/Moscow News Agency via AP, File)
FILE - Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich stands in a glass cage in a courtroom in Yekaterinburg, Russia, June 26, 2024. The U.S. Ambassador told Russia’s foreign minister on Tuesday, July 16, that President Vladimir Putin should release detained Americans, singling out Gershkovich and ex-Marine Paul Whelan and accusing the Russian leader of continuing to treat “human beings as bargaining chips.” (AP Photo, File)