For years, a Russian is said to have spread propaganda and set up political groups in the US on behalf of the Russian government in order to influence the elections. The authorities accuse him of turning US citizens into instruments of the Kremlin. The man is now being tried.
The US accuses a Russian national of influencing US elections. He is said to have instrumentalized political groups on behalf of the Russian government for years to "spread pro-Russian propaganda and interfere in US elections," according to the US Department of Justice.
The man is said to be the founder and chairman of the anti-globalization movement in Russia, which is funded from Russia and based in Moscow. The public prosecutor's office accuses him of using members of this network for his own purposes and of having paid for trips to Russia. According to the Justice Department, between 2014 and 2022 he set up political groups in the states of Florida, Georgia and California under the supervision of the Russian secret services and with the support of the Kremlin.
According to the court documents, the man organized "a shameless influence campaign" in which US political groups and US citizens were made instruments of the Russian government, said Deputy Attorney General Matthew Olsen of the Department of Justice's National Security Division With. "The Justice Department will not allow Russia to unlawfully sow division and spread misinformation in the United States."
The United States also accuses the man of having passed on detailed information to the Russian secret service. "Clandestine efforts by foreign governments to influence American elections and political groups threaten our democracy," said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite Jr. of the Justice Department's Criminal Division.
The findings of the US secret services about Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential election made headlines worldwide. According to this, Russia had tried to manipulate the election in favor of Donald Trump by massively spreading false information.
