Kurmasheva is a Prague-based journalist for Radio Free
Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), which is funded by the U.S.
Congress and designated by Russia as a foreign agent, meaning it
gets foreign funding for activity deemed to be political.
In a statement, RFE/RL acting president Jeffrey Gedmin said: "Alsu
has spent 45 days behind bars in Russia and, today, her unjust,
politically motivated detention has been extended.
"We call on Russian authorities to immediately grant Alsu
consular access, which is her right as a U.S. citizen. Alsu must
be released and reunited with her family."
Kurmasheva holds both U.S. and Russian passports, and entered
Russia on May 20 to deal with a family emergency, RFE/RL said.
As she awaited her return flight on June 2, she was detained and
her passports were confiscated.
According to court documents, Kurmasheva was fined 10,000
roubles ($103) on Oct. 11 for failing to register her U.S.
passport with Russian authorities. She was charged a week later
with failure to register as a foreign agent, an offence that
carries up to five years in prison.
The term "foreign agent", which has Cold War connotations of
espionage, has been applied in Russia to organisations,
journalists, rights activists and even entertainers, and brings
with it close government scrutiny and a mountain of red tape.
Kurmasheva is the second U.S. journalist detained in Russia
since the start of the war in Ukraine.
In March 2023, the FSB security service arrested Wall Street
Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on espionage charges that
carry a prison term of up to 20 years. Gershkovich, his
newspaper and U.S. President Joe Biden have all denied he is a
spy, and the U.S. ambassador has accused Moscow of conducting
"hostage diplomacy".
(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Felix Light; Editing by Mark
Trevelyan)
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