Russia Sets Closed Espionage Trial for US Reporter Gershkovich

US journalist Evan Gershkovich stands inside a defendants' cage before a hearing to consider an appeal on his extended pre-trial detention, at the Moscow City Court in Moscow on Feb. 20, 2024. Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images

MOSCOW—Russia’s espionage trial of detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has denied charges of collecting secrets for the CIA, will be held behind closed doors, the trial court said on June 17.

Mr. Gershkovich, 32, was detained by the Federal Security Service (FSB) on March 29, 2023, at a steak house in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg, 1,400 km (900 miles) east of Moscow, on charges of espionage that carry up to 20 years in prison.