What is hostage diplomacy and why is it on the rise?

Russia's arrest of the American journalist Evan Gershkovich for spying has shone a spotlight on what the US calls 'hostage diplomacy', a practice which involves imprisoning a foreign national, usually on spurious or exaggerated charges in order to extract concessions from that person’s government.

The increase of hostage diplomacy—by China, Russia, Iran, Venezuela and North Korea—recently prompted President Biden to declare it a national emergency.

This week the US announced that Mr Gershkovich is being held in Russia as “wrongfully detained”, a finding that means the American government sees him as a political hostage.

As the number of detentions has increased, the US has become more willing to strike deals with foreign governments to free US nationals. Last year’s high-profile prisoner swap of US basketball star Brittney Griner and Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout was hailed by some as a diplomatic success story. But critics say it sets a dangerous precedent, arguing that prisoner exchanges simply encourage hostile powers to arbitrarily arrest more foreign nationals.

Meanwhile, another US citizen accused of spying remains in a Russian prison. Former US marine Paul Whelan was given a 16-year jail sentence in 2020 after being arrested in Moscow in 2018.

So what determines who is selected for prisoner swaps? Are prisoner swaps a good solution to a painful dilemma, or do they mean that authoritarian states simply will detain more foreigners seeking a trade-off from western countries?

Photo:Evan Gershkovich, US reporter for The Wall Street Journal. Credit: Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Dr Danielle Gilbert, fellow in US foreign policy and International security at Dartmouth college in New Hampshire

Dr Kylie Moore-Gilbert was detained on a visit to Iran where she was held for two years. She's now a visiting fellow in security studies at Sydney University, Australia.

Professor Colleen Graffy was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy travelling around 40 countries in Europe and Eurasia, making America's case on behalf of George W.Bush's Administration. She is a law professor at Pepperdine Caruso Law School.

also featuring:

US diplomat Bill Richardson, director the Richardson Center which helps negotiate the release of US political prisoners and hostages held overseas. He's a former governor of the US state of New Mexico.

Baroness Shami Chakrabarti, Labour Party politician, barrister, and human rights activist in the UK.

Producers: Ellen Otzen and Rumella Dasgupta.