In addition, Russia’s interpretation of what constitutes espionage is broad. Igor Sutyagin, an arms control expert at a Russian Academy of Sciences think tank, was behind bars for espionage for 11 years for passing along material that he said was publicly available.

Paul Whelan, an American corporate security executive, was arrested in Moscow for espionage in 2018 and his serving a 16-year sentence.

Gershkovich’s arrest came about a year after President Vladimir Putin pushed through laws…