MOSCOW -Russian prosecutors at the trial of U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich on Friday requested that he be jailed for 18 years on charges of spying, Russian news agencies reported.

A verdict will be passed on the Wall Street Journal reporter within hours, the agencies said. Gershkovich, his newspaper and the U.S. government all reject the accusation of spying.

"The judge retired to the deliberation room to decide the verdict. The verdict will be announced today at 17.00 (1200 GMT)," state news agency TASS quoted the court press secretary as saying.

The sentence requested by prosecutors was two years short of the maximum 20 years prescribed under Russian law for espionage.

Gershkovich is accused of gathering information on the orders of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency about a Russian company producing tanks for the war in Ukraine. His newspaper has said the trial is a sham, and the outcome pre-determined.

He was arrested on March 29, 2023, and has since been held mainly in Moscow's Lefortovo prison.

The Kremlin has said he was caught "red-handed" but has not published evidence. The court proceedings have been closed to the media on the grounds that the case involves state secrets.

  - Reuters