Russia’s domestic security agency says it has arrested a US citizen on espionage charges.
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December 31 2018 5:56 PM
Russia’s domestic security agency says it has arrested a US citizen on espionage charges.
The Federal Security Service, or FSB, the top KGB successor agency, said that the American man was detained in Moscow on Friday.
The agency said he was caught «during an espionage operation».
The state Tass news agency identified the detained man as Paul Whelan. Spying charges carry a prison sentence of up to 20 years in Russia.
The US Embassy in Moscow had no immediate comment.
The arrest comes as Russia-US ties have sunk to post-Cold War lows over the Ukrainian crisis, the war in Syria and the allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.
The US State Department said it was «aware of the detention of a US citizen by Russian authorities» and had received formal notification from the Russian Foreign Ministry. It said it was pushing for consular access to the detained American.
«Russia’s obligations under the Vienna Convention require them to provide consular access.
