What does the CIA think a man needs after more than a year in captivity? A tablet of Viagra.
Evan Gershkovich, the US journalist who spent 16 months in a Russian prison accused of espionage, has revealed the unusual contents of the “recovery kit” he was issued on being freed in a prisoner swap in 2024.
On the flight home to the Andrews military base in Maryland, US, he was handed a small package.
“Typically, it’s the state department who put together the recovery kits, but it was the CIA who put together these recovery kits and, in mine, they put Viagra.
“Maybe it’s a smart thing – a traumatised person comes home and sees his wife for the first time in years or whatever. Or is this what the CIA brings along for its missions abroad? We couldn’t figure it out,” he said.
Mr Gershkovich said he had saved the pill as a “memento” of his release.
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Mr Gershkovich said he was able to cope in prison awaiting trial by setting up a routine that included reading, note-taking and backgammon. “Human beings are adaptable. You create a life,” he explained.
He admitted that, when told that he was about to be released, he did not feel ready to leave because "it’s really difficult to become normal again”.
He had 16 months of therapy to recover after being released and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Mr Gershkovich was asked whether he was still looking over his shoulder, fearing more unwelcome attention from the FSB. But he said that he had fulfilled his purpose for the Russians as “a useful geopolitical trading chip” and now felt safe.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/10/10/cia-gave-journalist-viagra-after-he-was-freed-from-russia/