Russia's principal internal security agency announced on Monday that a former employee who had been detained from the U.S. Consulate in Vladivostok is now facing allegations of gathering intelligence on Russia's actions in Ukraine and related matters on behalf of U.S. diplomats.
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB), the country's primary domestic security organization, revealed that Robert Shonov stands accused of "acquiring information regarding the specialized military operation, the process of mobilization within Russian regions, issues, and evaluations of their impact on civil protest activities leading up to the 2024 presidential election."
The FSB, the successor to the renowned KGB, stated that it has issued summonses to question two U.S. diplomats who are allegedly linked to instructing Shonov in collecting this information.
While Shonov's arrest was initially reported in May, no specific details were provided by Russian authorities at that time. The U.S. State Department has denounced his apprehension.
Shonov is facing charges under a newly introduced section of Russian law which criminalizes "confidential collaboration with a foreign state, international, or foreign organization to aid activities that are evidently targeted against Russia's security." Critics of the Kremlin have contended that this phrasing is so broad that it could be exploited to penalize any Russian individual with foreign affiliations. The offense carries a potential prison sentence of up to eight years.
The U.S. State Department has indicated that Shonov served at the U.S. consulate in Vladivostok for a span exceeding 25 years. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the consulate was closed in 2020 and has not resumed operations since.
Following a directive from the Russian government in April 2021, which mandated the termination of all local staff members in U.S. diplomatic posts across Russia, Shonov transitioned to employment with a company contracted by the U.S. to provide assistance to its embassy in Moscow.
In May, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller conveyed that Shonov's role during the time of his arrest was solely focused on "compiling media summaries of press items from publicly available Russian media sources." He asserted that Shonov's detention emphasizes Russia's utilization of increasingly oppressive laws against its own citizens.
Reports from Russian news sources have indicated that Shonov is being held in Moscow's Lefortovo prison.
Also confined in Lefortovo is Evan Gershkovich, an American journalist affiliated with The Wall Street Journal. Gershkovich has been in custody since his arrest by Russia's security service on March 29 on charges of espionage—a claim refuted by him, his employer, and the U.S. government.
Gershkovich's detention has perturbed the journalism community in Russia and elicited strong condemnation from Western nations. The United States has officially labeled Gershkovich's detention as "unjust" and has demanded his immediate release.
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