MOSCOW. June 26 (Interfax) - Washington's attempts to politicize the trial of U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich are counterproductive, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said.
"It's one of the important elements of the trial. Procedurally, everything is taking place in accordance with our regulations. I think attempts to politicize this issue, which we see the United States making, are counterproductive. Therefore, I will not predict any timeframe in which specific steps will be made, that's not my responsibility. Generally, it's pointless to speak about the nature of these steps," Ryabkov said when responding to a question as to whether the start of the Gershkovich trial could speed up his exchange for Russian citizens imprisoned in the U.S.
"We recently emphasized more than once [...] that the U.S. administration, which is showing such interest and such active involvement in his fate, should seriously consider the signals that they in Washington have received via relevant channels, as I understand," Ryabkov said.
"They should not brush them aside as they normally do, but think about the essence of these signals. Maybe something will become clearer to them then," he said.