{"id":81965,"date":"2024-06-26T21:28:04","date_gmt":"2024-06-26T21:28:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/06\/26\/thursday-briefing-evan-gershkovichs-trial\/"},"modified":"2024-06-26T21:28:04","modified_gmt":"2024-06-26T21:28:04","slug":"thursday-briefing-evan-gershkovichs-trial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/06\/26\/thursday-briefing-evan-gershkovichs-trial\/","title":{"rendered":"Thursday Briefing: Evan Gershkovich\u2019s Trial"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align:center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1050\" height=\"550\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/06\/27\/multimedia\/27ambriefing-asia-Gershkovich-vfzk\/27ambriefing-asia-Gershkovich-vfzk-facebookJumbo.jpg?fit=1050,550&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Thursday Briefing: Evan Gershkovich\u2019s Trial\" title=\"Thursday Briefing: Evan Gershkovich\u2019s Trial\" \/><\/div><p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<h2 class=\"css-13o6u42 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-5c381d34\">Evan Gershkovich\u2019s trial began in Russia<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter and a U.S. citizen, has already endured 15 months in a notorious Moscow prison. Yesterday, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/26\/world\/europe\/russia-evan-gershkovich-trial.html\" title=\"\">his trial finally began<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Shortly before the proceedings started, journalists filmed Gershkovich standing in a glass cage and nodding at people in the courtroom, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/video\/world\/europe\/100000009540741\/russia-evan-gershkovich-trial.html\" title=\"\">video showed<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Gershkovich, 32, faces up to 20 years in a penal colony on a spying charge that he, his employer and the U.S. have all called bogus and politically motivated. There is little doubt about the outcome of the trial, but there may be hope: a prisoner exchange.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIt\u2019s widely accepted that the Russian state regards his case as leverage to get Russians held in custody \u2014 either in the U.S. or in other Western countries,\u201d said my colleague Ivan Nechepurenko, who is based in Tbilisi, Georgia, and has covered Gershkovich\u2019s case.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThere\u2019s going to be this trial, but the more important process will be the ongoing talks between Russian and American intelligence services about a potential prisoner exchange,\u201d Ivan said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The Russian authorities haven\u2019t revealed any evidence to support their charges. Observers have been barred from attending the trial, which began in the industrial city of Yekaterinburg, near the Ural Mountains. His lawyers have been prohibited from publicly revealing anything they learn.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But, Ivan said, Gershkovich has a lot of public support, which could turn up the heat on U.S. negotiators, as it did for Brittney Griner, the W.N.B.A. star, who was detained in Russia and released in late 2022.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIt basically all depends on whether the U.S. and Russia can make a deal,\u201d Ivan told me. Gershkovich is the first Western journalist to be arrested on espionage charges in Russia since the 1980s.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\"><strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\">Also in Russia:<\/strong> A prominent playwright and a director are being <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/25\/world\/europe\/russia-playwright-director-terrorism-trial.html\" title=\"\">prosecuted for their work<\/a>. Cultural figures say their trial on terrorism charges is a chilling sign of increased repression.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<h2 class=\"css-13o6u42 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-6ad16bf0\">Kenya\u2019s leader pulled the tax bill<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In a sudden reversal, President William Ruto said yesterday that <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/26\/world\/africa\/kenya-protests-taxes.html\" title=\"\">he would not sign a controversial finance bill<\/a>, a day after rights groups said that at least 23 people were killed during protests in Nairobi against the measure.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cListening keenly to the people of Kenya who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this finance bill, I concede,\u201d Ruto said in an address to the country, \u201cand therefore, I will not sign the 2024 finance bill, and it shall subsequently be withdrawn.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Tuesday was one of the bloodiest days in Kenya\u2019s recent history. Ruto deployed the military to deal with what he called \u201ctreasonous\u201d protests. Some people vowed to march again today to protest the crackdown and mourn those killed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\"><strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\">Context:<\/strong> Kenya is the fastest-growing economy in Africa but it is also <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/26\/business\/kenya-tax-protests-debt.html\" title=\"\">on the brink of a fiscal calamity<\/a>, with $80 billion in domestic and foreign public debt. Ruto had championed the bill as a way to stabilize the economy. Those against it argued that the tax hikes would raise the cost of living by too much.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"css-7ad88g e1mu4ftr0\"\/><\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<h2 class=\"css-13o6u42 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-2974d271\">Bolivia\u2019s military was accused of a coup attempt<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">President Luis Arce said on social media yesterday that members of Bolivia\u2019s military had gathered outside the presidential palace in <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/26\/world\/americas\/bolivia-unrest-military.html\" title=\"\">an attempted coup<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The action appeared to be an effort by a general to take over the government building.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Standing on the doorstep of the palace in La Paz and surrounded by members of the armed forces, the general, Juan Jos\u00e9 Z\u00fa\u00f1iga, said that the Bolivian army, air force and navy were \u201cmobilized\u201d and that \u201cthe police force is also with us.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Former President Evo Morales claimed that a \u201ccoup\u201d was underway. \u201cAt this time, personnel from the Armed Forces and tanks are deployed in Plaza Murillo,\u201d he said on social media. \u201cLet\u2019s call on the social movements of the countryside and the city to defend democracy.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"css-1uuxri4 e1gnsphs0\" id=\"link-55bd377a\"><span><strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\">MORE TOP NEWS<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">A fatal fungal disease has devastated the world\u2019s frog population. But scientists may have come up with a solution: <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/26\/science\/frogs-amphibians-chytrid-fungus.html\" title=\"\">saunas<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Researchers in Australia found that sun-warmed bricks attract the green and golden bell frog, a vulnerable species, and raise its body temperature, helping it fight off infection and giving it a degree of immunity.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"css-1uuxri4 e1gnsphs0\" id=\"link-286d948a\"><span><strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\">CONVERSATION STARTERS<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<h2 class=\"css-13o6u42 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-4a04cfc1\">Is India the future for international brands?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In a global marketplace reshaped by volatile forces \u2014 especially the animosity between the U.S. and China \u2014 some multinational retailers are turning away from Chinese factories. Instead, many <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/26\/business\/india-us-manufacturing.html\" title=\"\">are looking to India<\/a>, which may be on the verge of becoming a major manufacturing power.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The shift could fortify the global supply chain and lift fortunes in India. The country has roughly one billion people of working age, but about only 430 million jobs, according to an independent research institution. Growing exports could be a source of new jobs \u2014 especially for women, who have been largely shut out of the formal working ranks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/26\/world\/asia\/evan-gershkovich-kenya-bolivia-asia.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Evan Gershkovich\u2019s trial began in Russia Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter and a U.S. citizen, has already endured 15 months in a notorious Moscow prison. Yesterday, his trial finally began. Shortly before the proceedings started, journalists filmed Gershkovich standing in a glass cage and nodding at people in the courtroom, video showed. Gershkovich, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":81966,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/06\/27\/multimedia\/27ambriefing-asia-Gershkovich-vfzk\/27ambriefing-asia-Gershkovich-vfzk-facebookJumbo.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[235,18194,68196,9086,6230],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81965"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81965"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81965\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81967,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81965\/revisions\/81967"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/81966"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81965"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81965"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81965"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}