US sanctions Russian journalists over influence campaign

The US on Wednesday, 4 September announced sweeping actions targeting Russian government-backed efforts to conduct a malign influence campaign in America, that included the sanctioning of 10 individuals and two entities, the seizure of 32 Internet domain names used in the operation and charges filed against two employees of RT, a Russian state-run media outlet previously called Russia Today.

The individuals designated included RT's Editor-in-Chief Margarita Simonova Simonyan, Deputy Editor-in-Chief Elizaveta Yuryevna Brodskaia, and Anton Sergeyvich Anisimov, another RT Deputy Editor-in-Chief.

The indicted individuals were RT employees Kostiantyn Kalashnikov, 31, and Elena Afanasyeva, 27.

They had used a US company based in Tennessee to create and put out content intended to spread misinformation.

That company was funded by RT, the US Department of Justice has alleged. They remain at large.

These two individuals have been charged with violating a US law that requires foreign agents to register with the government for money laundering.

"The Justice Department is seizing 32 internet domains that the Russian government and Russian government-sponsored actors have used to engage in a covert campaign to interfere in and influence the outcome of our country's elections," Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said.

"As alleged in our court filings, President Vladimir Putin's inner circle, including Sergei Kiriyenko, directed Russian public relations companies to promote disinformation and state-sponsored narratives as part of a campaign to influence the 2024 US presidential election," he added.

Garland cited an internal planning document created by the Kremlin that stated that the goal of the campaign was to "secure Russia's preferred outcome in the election.

The seized sites were "filled with Russian government propaganda that had been created by the Kremlin to reduce international support for Ukraine, bolster pro-Russian policies and interests, and influence voters in the US and other countries," the Attorney General said.

Announcing the designation of 10 individuals and two entities, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said, "Today's action underscores the US government's ongoing efforts to hold state-sponsored actors accountable for activities that aim to deteriorate public trust in our institutions."

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, "To counter Russia's state-backed covert influence operations, the Department is acting to hinder malicious actors from using Kremlin-supported media as a cover to conduct such covert influence activities.

The Department's actions include introducing a new visa restriction policy, Foreign Missions Act determinations of RT's parent company Rossiya Segodnya, and other subsidiaries RIA Novosti, RT, TV-Novosti, Sputnik and Ruptly, and announcing a Rewards for Justice offer."