Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Sunday, calling for the “immediate release” of two Americans currently detained in Russia, the State Department announced in a statement. 

Blinken demanded the release of Evan Gershkovich, an American reporter for The Wall Street Journal, and Paul Whelan, a U.S. Marine veteran who has been detained in the country since 2018. Gershkovich was arrested last week on accusations of espionage by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB). 

“Secretary Blinken conveyed the United States’ grave concern over Russia’s unacceptable detention of a U.S. citizen journalist,” the State Department readout said. “The Secretary called for his immediate release. Secretary Blinken further urged the Kremlin to immediately release wrongfully detained U.S. citizen Paul Whelan.”

“The Secretary and Foreign Minister Lavrov also discussed the importance of creating an environment that permits diplomatic missions to carry out their work,” the statement added. 

On March 29, in the first arrest of an American journalist on espionage charges since 1986, Gershokovich was detained in Yekaterinburg, located in the Ural Mountains, while on a reporting trip, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Whelan is currently serving a 16-year prison sentence in a penal colony on espionage charges, accusations which Whelan denies and the U.S. government says are baseless. 

“I spoke with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov today to convey our grave concern over Russia’s unacceptable detention of a U.S. citizen journalist,” Blinken posted on Twitter Sunday. “I called for his release and for the release of wrongfully detained U.S. citizen Paul Whelan.”

I spoke with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov today to convey our grave concern over Russia’s unacceptable detention of a U.S. citizen journalist. I called for his release and for the release of wrongfully detained U.S. citizen Paul Whelan.

— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) April 2, 2023

In a statement of their own, the Russian Foreign Ministry claimed the United States was politicizing Gershokovich’s detention, saying, “it is unacceptable for officials in Washington and the western media to whip up a stir with the clear intention of giving this case a political colouring.” 

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“Blinken’s attention was drawn to the need to respect the decisions of the Russian authorities, taken in accordance with the law and international obligations of the Russian Federation,” the foreign ministry said. 

Russia has yet to provide any evidence for its allegations against Gershkovich but claimed he was “caught red-handed while trying to obtain secret information, collecting data constituting a state secret under the guise of a journalistic status.”

“In the light of the established facts of the illegal activities of the U.S. citizen … his further fate will be determined by the court,” the foreign ministry added. 

Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison, according to The New York Times. The Wall Street Journal “vehemently denies” the allegations, as did Gershkovich in a court appearance last week. 

Biden told reporters on Friday that his message to Russia regarding Gershkovich was “let him go.” As of Sunday, American officials have yet to receive consular access to the detained journalist to determine his condition. The conversation between Blinken and Lavrov was just the third since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. 

West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin did everything short of declaring a 2024 presidential run.

Appearing on several Sunday talk shows, Manchin was repeatedly pressed on whether he planned to announce his candidacy. Manchin refused to answer when asked point blank but gave strong hints that he is considering entering the race. The moderate Democrat said a growing number of people are looking for a voice in the middle to unite the nation.

“First of all, I’m worn out,” Manchin told host Dana Bash on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “The people are tired, sick and tired, of the fighting and division that we have and dividing the country. Abraham Lincoln said, divided, we cannot stand. We cannot … have a divided country, and we cannot withstand that. We have to come together. We’re the United States.”

“There’s a movement going on that people want to bring the extremes back to the sensible and reasonable, responsible middle,” he added.

“Do you want to lead that movement in a bid for president?” asked Bash.

Manchin did not answer, continuing his point.

“I’m trying to get a dialogue to where people are saying, ‘come on, this is ridiculous,'” he said. “Don’t force people to go to the extremes. No one runs their life this way. Let’s come back to the middle. It’s the United States of America. It’s about our country. Everyone’s worried about their own political future. I’m worried about the country.”

Democrat Senator Joe Manchin repeatedly dodges on if he's considering a run for president in 2024: "There's a movement going on" pic.twitter.com/0sOuOlkbxW

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) April 2, 2023

In another appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Manchin said news headlines about former President Donald Trump’s indictment distract from geopolitical unrest around the world, the budget and debt crises, inflation, and energy security. Host Chuck Todd remarked that Manchin sounded “like a presidential candidate,” and pushed him again.

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“When you’re asking me what I’m going to do and what my political ambitions would be, it’s to make the country work together and be a United States and not the divided states,” Manchin responded. “I’m going to do whatever I can to have a voice in that middle, that we can basically force both sides to say, ‘Wait a minute, you’ve gone to extremes. You’ve got to start coming back. You’ve got to find ways to solve problems.’ You can’t solve them from the extreme right and the extreme left. You can’t make people, make a — pick a side.”

Asked directly if he is running, Manchin again deflected.

“I’m not ready to do anything this year,” he said. “Only in America does the next election start the day after the last election ended. I don’t do that. I’ve got a lot of work to do this year, and I’m going to work with everybody.”

“My filing date is January 15, 2024, and I will make my decision before that, but not until the end of the year, I can assure you,” he added.