On the Ground in Putin’s Russia: Evan Gershkovich’s Coverage of a Country at War

A selection of articles by the Wall Street Journal Russia correspondent March 31, 2023 Tap story

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has been arrested in Russia and accused of spying, the first American journalist detained on espionage charges since the Cold War. The Journal vehemently denies the accusations. President Biden and news organizations around the world have joined the Journal in calling for his immediate release. Mr. Gershkovich, 31 years old, started at the Journal in early 2022. He has written exclusive accounts about the Kremlin's war efforts, profiled Russian dissidents and reported from Russian border towns on the war's toll since Russia invaded Ukraine. Here is a selection of his work.

Fight for Bakhmut Becomes Moment of Truth for Wagner Founder Tensions rise between Kremlin elite and paramilitary force’s Yevgeny Prigozhin Sergey Shestak/AFP/Getty Images Read the Story

Putin’s War Rhetoric Rallies Russian Border Towns, but Nerves Fray Casualties haven’t so far shaken Pskov, region that is home to elite paratrooper division that occupied Bucha Nanna Heitmann/Magnum for WSJ Read the Story

Russians Mourn Ukrainians Killed in War at Statue to a Ukrainian Poet in Moscow People have been laying flowers at the Lesya Ukrainka monument in central Moscow nearly every day since the Dnipro apartment strike WSJ Read the Story

Dozens of Russian Draftees Died in a Ukrainian Strike. Putin’s War Machine Rolled On. A New Year’s Day attack on an army barracks has rattled soldiers and families but not dented Russia’s reluctant resolve Zuma Press Read the Story

Putin, Isolated and Distrustful, Leans on Handful of Hard-Line Advisers Russia’s president built a power structure designed to deliver him the information he wants to hear, feeding into his miscalculations on the Ukraine war Photo Illustration: Dave Cole/WSJ; Photo: Zuma Press Read the Story

The Chechen Warlord Who Does Putin’s Dirty Work in Ukraine Ramzan Kadyrov, once an anti-Russian rebel, now gets billions from Moscow and plays a key role in the war Photo Illustration: Dave Cole/WSJ; Photos: Sputnik, Reuters Read the Story

In Russian Border City, Pro-Kremlin Ukrainians, Soldiers Regroup After Retreat From Ukraine Belgorod is on edge after Moscow’s forces vacate northeastern Ukraine. ‘We ourselves don’t understand what happened.’ Evan Gershkovich/WSJ Read the Story

A Russian Soldier’s Inside View of Moscow’s War in Ukraine Demoralized troops, poor logistics undercut performance of Russian military, says paratrooper who fought there Skander Khlif for WSJ Read the Story

Putin’s Unexpected Challenge: Snubs From His Central Asian Allies Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has Kazakhstan and its neighbors rethinking alliances and reaching out to the U.S. Anush Babajanyan for WSJ Read the Story

In Russia’s Biggest Cities, Ukraine War Fades to Background Noise Bars are packed out, film and jazz festivals are sold out and Moscow’s police officers are busier handing out fines for public drinking than putting down dissent WSJ Read the Story

As Coffins Come Home, Russians Confront Toll of Ukraine Invasion Relatives of soldiers killed say they were defending both countries from fascists AFP/Getty Images Read the Story

He Worked for Moscow’s Police for Nearly 20 Years. Then He Spoke Up About the Ukraine War. Sergei Klokov, one of many Russian-Ukrainians, now faces 10 years in prison WSJ Read the Story

‘We Will Kill You’: How Russia Silenced Its Antiwar Movement Repressive laws and arrests discourage protests against the war in Ukraine and prompt dissenters to leave Justyna Mielnikiewicz/ MAPS for WSJ Read the Story

This browser does not support the video element. Russia Evacuates Wounded Soldiers to Belarus as Its Casualties in Ukraine War Rise Convoys of ambulances in border area; ‘There has been a constant flow’ Evan Gershkovich/WSJ Read the Story

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