Yekaterinburg, Russia - US reporter Evan Gershkovich was sentenced by a Russian court on Friday to 16 years in prison for "espionage," a verdict reached after just over three weeks of secretive court proceedings denounced by Washington as a sham.

Russia has a policy of not exchanging prisoners internationally unless they have already been convicted, potentially paving the way for the 32-year-old to be swapped in a deal.

He was sentenced to "punishment in the form of imprisonment for a term of 16 years in a strict regime colony," Judge Andrei Mineyev said.

Gershkovich did not appear to react to the sentencing, standing in a glass defendants' cage in dark pants and a T-shirt. He waved to his journalist colleagues as he was led away.

Russia Russia rejects "fake" report of North Koreans fighting in Ukraine

The Wall Street Journal correspondent, who pleaded not guilty, became the first journalist in Russia to be charged with spying since the Cold War when he was detained in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg in March 2023.

He has spent almost 16 months in detention on charges the US government and his employer believe are fabricated.

"This disgraceful, sham conviction comes after Evan has spent 478 days in prison, wrongfully detained, away from his family and friends, prevented from reporting, all for doing his job as a journalist," the Journal's publisher Almar Latour and editor-in-chief Emma Tucker said in a statement.

Press rights group Reporters Without Borders slammed the sentencing as "outrageous" and called for Gershkovich to be immediately released.

Washington believes he is being held as a bargaining chip to secure the release of Russians convicted abroad.

Russia Putin says US relations with Russia will depend on presidential election

His trial has moved rapidly since the first hearing in late June, with the prosecution and defense teams giving their final arguments on Friday.

Other similar cases in Russia have dragged on far more slowly, with several weeks or even months between hearings.

When asked Friday, the Kremlin refused to be drawn into speculation about the prospect of a prisoner swap.