‘She corresponded with Putin himself’: US-Russia citizen charged with acting as illegal Russian agent, prosecutors say

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The US Department of Justice alleges that a 61-year-old Russian national coordinated with Vladimir Putin and lobbyists to promote Russian propaganda in the US, illegally acting as a foreign agent for Russia’s government while operating US-based organisations and an “I Love Russia” campaign.

Federal prosecutors have charged Elena Branson – a dual citizen of the US and Russia – with acting as an agent of a foreign government without notifying US authorities, conspiring to commit visa fraud, making false statements to the FBI, and failing to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

US Attorney Damian Williams with the Southern District of New York said Ms Branson “actively subverted foreign agent registration laws in the United States in order to promote Russian policies and ideology”.

“The Russian government at its highest levels, up to and including President Vladimir Putin, have made known that aggressive propaganda and recruitment of the Russian diaspora around the world is a Russian priority,” he said in a statement on 8 March. “In connection with this pursuit, Branson is alleged to have corresponded with Putin himself and met with a high-ranking Russia minister before founding a Russian propaganda center here in New York City, the Russian Center New York.”

She left the US in 2020 for Russia and remains at large, according to the Justice Department.

Federal prosectors allege Ms Branson coordinated with Russian officials in 2012 to open the Russian Center New York, for which she “received tens of thousands of dollars in funding from the Russian government” for events and messaging at the direction of Russian officials, without registering her role as a foreign agent with US authorities, according to the government’s complaint.

She also chaired the Russian Community Council of the USA, funded in part by various Russian government-run entities, according to prosecutors. The organisation launched an “I Love Russia” campaign and organised youth forums to promote Russian history and culture to young Americans, the complaint alleges.

Prosecutors also allege that Ms Branson sought to obtain fraudulent visas for Russian officials and their associates to enter the US.

FBI agents interviewed Ms Branson on 29 September 2020, during which she falsely claimed that she “had never been asked by Russian officials to coordinate any meetings” between US business leaders or Russian officials, according to the Justice Department.

In an interview with Russian television last year, Ms Branson said she left the US because she thought she would be arrested if she stayed.

The indictment comes as President Joe Biden ordered a ban on Russian oil imports in retaliation for Moscow’s ongoing assault against Ukraine, in the midst of a growing crisis from Russian attacks.

“Particularly given current global events, the need to detect and hinder attempts at foreign influence is of critical importance,” Mr Williams said in a statement.