Ex-reporter accused of treason in Russia

Security agency allegations say arms-sales information passed to Czechs in 2017

Ivan Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia’s state space corporation (second from left), greets supporters Tuesday behind bars in a courtroom in Moscow.
(AP/Moscow News Agency/Sofia Sandurskaya)
Ivan Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia’s state space corporation (second from left), greets supporters Tuesday behind bars in a courtroom in Moscow.
(AP/Moscow News Agency/Sofia Sandurskaya)

MOSCOW -- A former journalist who worked as an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation was arrested and jailed Tuesday on charges of passing military secrets to a Czech intelligence agency, accusations that many of his colleagues dismissed as absurd.

Ivan Safronov, who had written about military and security issues for a decade before becoming an adviser to Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin, was detained outside his apartment in Moscow by agents of the Federal Security Service, the main KGB successor agency.

He could be heard shouting "I'm innocent" as agents led him into a courtroom where a judge considered, and ultimately granted, the agency's request to authorize his arrest. The judge ordered Safronov jailed for two months as the investigation continues.

Safronov's detention sent shock waves across Russian media outlets, with many journalists questioning the treason charges and his former newspaper openly rejecting them as "absurd."

The Federal Security Service said that Safronov is accused of relaying sensitive data to a spy agency of an unspecified NATO member. It said in a statement that the information he provided referred to "military-technical cooperation, defense and security of the Russian Federation."

After the court hearing, Safronov's lawyers said in remarks carried by Russian news agencies that the security service has accused Safronov of cooperating with an intelligence agency in the Czech Republic when he worked as a correspondent for top Russian business daily Kommersant.

The agency claimed that in 2017 he passed sensitive information about Russian arms sales to the Middle East and Africa to Czech intelligence services, they said.

Defense lawyer Yevgeny Smirnov said the Federal Security Service alleged that the Czech intelligence agency recruited Safronov in 2012, paid him for his services and collected the information for U.S. interests.

Another lawyer, Ivan Pavlov, said the materials the agency provided during the court hearing lacked evidence related to the passing of sensitive data, Russian news agency Interfax reported.

The Federal Security Service released video footage of plainclothes agents stopping Safronov outside his apartment building, searching him and putting him inside a minivan in handcuffs.

Safronov could face up to 20 years in prison, if convicted.

Roscosmos said that Safronov didn't have access to state secrets, and claimed that the charges didn't relate to Safronov's work for the corporation, which he joined in May. Before that, Safronov worked as a correspondent for the top business daily Kommersant for nearly a decade until 2019, and after that worked for a year for another business daily, Vedomosti.

He covered military issues, arms trade and government affairs.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Safronov's detention wasn't related to his activities as a journalist. Grilled about the case during a conference call with reporters Tuesday, Peskov described Safronov, who once covered the Kremlin, as a "talented journalist."

Kommersant put out a statement in support of Safronov, hailing him as one of the country's top journalists and a "true patriot" who was deeply concerned about the state of the military and space industries that he covered. The newspaper described the accusations against him as "absurd."

The paper noted that rights activists, journalists, scientists and corporate officials who faced treason accusations found it difficult to defend themselves because of secrecy surrounding their cases and lack of public access.

"As a result, the public has to rely on the narrative offered by special services, whose work has increasingly raised questions," Kommersant said. "Journalists asking those questions find themselves under blow."

About 20 journalists, including those who worked with Safronov for years, were detained outside Federal Security Service headquarters in Moscow when they picketed to protest his arrest. Some were handed court summons for violating a ban on street gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic, an offense punishable by an administrative fine.

Many former colleagues of Safronov alleged that the authorities may have wanted to take revenge for his reporting that exposed Russian military incidents and opaque arms trade deals.

Last year, the Federal Security Service reportedly opened an inquiry after publication of an article by Safronov that claimed that Russia had signed a contract with Egypt for the delivery of sophisticated Su-35 fighter jets. Kommersant later removed the report from its website, and no charges were filed.

Ivan Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation, stands behind bars in a courtroom in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, July 7, 2020. Safronov, a former journalist who worked as an adviser to the director of the Russian state space corporation, pleaded innocent to the treason charges against him. Ivan Safronov, a former journalist who served as an adviser to Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin, was detained in Moscow by agents of the Federal Security Service (FSB), the main KGB successor agency. (Sofia Sandurskaya, Moscow News Agency photo via AP)
Ivan Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation, stands behind bars in a courtroom in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, July 7, 2020. Safronov, a former journalist who worked as an adviser to the director of the Russian state space corporation, pleaded innocent to the treason charges against him. Ivan Safronov, a former journalist who served as an adviser to Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin, was detained in Moscow by agents of the Federal Security Service (FSB), the main KGB successor agency. (Sofia Sandurskaya, Moscow News Agency photo via AP)
Police officers detain Yelena Chernenko, a Kommersant journalist who worked with Ivan Safronov for years, with a poster reading 'We demand justice and openness in the trial of Ivan Safonov' during a picket to protest his arrest near the building of the Federal Security Service (FSB, Soviet KGB successor) in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, July 7, 2020.  Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation Roscosmos, has been detained on treason charges by the nation's top security agency. (AP Photo/Denis Kaminev)
Police officers detain Yelena Chernenko, a Kommersant journalist who worked with Ivan Safronov for years, with a poster reading 'We demand justice and openness in the trial of Ivan Safonov' during a picket to protest his arrest near the building of the Federal Security Service (FSB, Soviet KGB successor) in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, July 7, 2020. Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation Roscosmos, has been detained on treason charges by the nation's top security agency. (AP Photo/Denis Kaminev)
Ivan Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation, second left, shakes hands with his supporters standing behind bars in a courtroom in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, July 7, 2020. Safronov, a former journalist who worked as an adviser to the director of the Russian state space corporation, pleaded innocent to the treason charges against him. Ivan Safronov, a former journalist who served as an adviser to Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin, was detained in Moscow by agents of the Federal Security Service (FSB), the main KGB successor agency. (Sofia Sandurskaya, Moscow News Agency photo via AP)
Ivan Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation, second left, shakes hands with his supporters standing behind bars in a courtroom in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, July 7, 2020. Safronov, a former journalist who worked as an adviser to the director of the Russian state space corporation, pleaded innocent to the treason charges against him. Ivan Safronov, a former journalist who served as an adviser to Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin, was detained in Moscow by agents of the Federal Security Service (FSB), the main KGB successor agency. (Sofia Sandurskaya, Moscow News Agency photo via AP)
ADDING RUSSIA OUT - In this photo taken on Sunday, Jan. 10, 2016, Ivan Safronov looks at a photographer in his working place in Kommersant Publishing House in Moscow, Russia. Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation Roscosmos, has been detained on treason charges by the nation's top security agency. (Peter Kassin, Kommersant Photo via AP)
ADDING RUSSIA OUT - In this photo taken on Sunday, Jan. 10, 2016, Ivan Safronov looks at a photographer in his working place in Kommersant Publishing House in Moscow, Russia. Safronov, an adviser to the director of Russia's state space corporation Roscosmos, has been detained on treason charges by the nation's top security agency. (Peter Kassin, Kommersant Photo via AP)

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