The indictment of Aleksandr Viktorovich Ionov reflects what U.S. officials say are ongoing Russian government efforts to meddle in the American political process, to shape public opinion and to sow discord and dissent on hot-button social issues.
WASHINGTON — A Russian operative under the supervision of one of the Kremlin’s main intelligence services has been charged with recruiting political groups in the United States to advance pro-Russia propaganda, including during the invasion of Ukraine, the Justice Department said Friday.
Ionov worked under the supervision of the Russia’s Federal Security Service, or FSB — which conducts domestic intelligence and counterintelligence activities — and reported his activities back to the agency, prosecutors say. He is the founder and president of the Anti-Globalization Movement of Russia, a Moscow-based group that prosecutors say advocates for a fully sovereign Russia.
Prosecutors say Ionov in 2015 directed the group to post a petition titled “Petition on Crime of Genocide against African People in the United States.” The change.org petition notes America’s history of slavery and denial of civil rights for Black people. It argues the U.S. government still fails “to protect our health and well-being as expected under full citizenship” and inflicts “state or state-supported violence and terror on us.
Anai said her organization had never received money from Ionov or any other members of the Russian intelligence service. “Their premise is these were Russian campaigns. It’s a really insulting statement,” Anai said. “It was the Black community that ran the campaigns in our own interests. It’s an insulting notion that Black people can’t do anything for ourselves.”
The Treasury Department also announced sanctions against Ionov Friday, accusing him of giving money to organizations that he and Russian intelligence services thought would create a social or political disturbance in the U.S.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
DOJ indicts Russian national for using U.S. political groups to spread pro-Kremlin propagandaThe Department of Justice said Aleksandr Viktorovich Ionov, a resident of Moscow, and three FSB officials used various political groups in the United States to 'sow discord, spread pro-Kremlin propaganda and interfere in elections' within the U.S.
Read more »
Russia claims 40 Ukrainian POWs killed in strike with US HIMARS, Ukraine decries 'brutal execution'Russia claims U.S.-supplied HIMARS were used to kill 40 Ukrainian POWs in a Russian detention center in the Donbas. Ukraine denied the claims.
Read more »
Alleged KGB spies used ‘dead doubles’ to live in Hawaii for yearsFBI records show that this morbid tactic has been used by Russian spies in the past.
Read more »
Mask Mandates Return To Some School Districts Amid COVID UptickA majority of U.S. counties are experiencing medium or high community spread, the CDC says.
Read more »
Hawaii couple charged with stealing IDs of dead Texas kidsWalter Glenn Primrose and Gwynn Darle Morrison were arrested on Friday in Hawaii. The news came as a shock for one family whose deceased child's name was stolen,
Read more »