Two pro-Kremlin propagandists charged in the US with working for sanctioned Russian TV

American-born Russian propagandist Dimitri Simes and his wife Anastasia have been indicted in the United States for violating the sanctions regime in favor of the Russian TV channel Channel One.

The US Department of Justice noted that the indictment alleges that Dmitry and Anastasia Simes participated in a scheme to violate US sanctions in favor of the sanctioned Russian TV channel Channel One, as well as in laundering the proceeds of this scheme.

Simes couple provided services to Russia’s Channel One – Department of Justice

From at least June 2022 to the present, the Simes couple and other unnamed individuals provided services to Channel One, in exchange for which they received “more than a million dollars, a personal car and driver, an apartment payment in Moscow, and a team of 10 employees.”

If convicted, the Simes face up to 20 years in prison on each count.

A separate indictment concerns Anastasia Simes, who, along with other unnamed individuals, purchased art and antiques on behalf of Russian sanctioned oligarch Alexander Udodov from galleries and auction houses in the United States and Europe.

She stored these artworks in her home in Virginia, from where she would transport them to Russia. In return, Udodov reimbursed her for all expenses. If convicted, Simes faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each count.

Both cases are being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Office.

Who is Dimitri Simes?

Dmitry Simes is a co-host of a program on international relations on Russia’s state-run Channel One. His name has been repeatedly mentioned in Robert Mueller’s report because of his ties to Donald Trump’s campaign officials and Russian government officials, but he has never been charged.

For decades, Simes has been well known in the Washington diplomatic world and is considered an expert on Russian affairs. He was the long-time president and CEO of the Centre for the National Interest, a public policy think tank founded by former President Richard Nixon, which he left in 2022.

In a propaganda program on Channel One, Simes positioned himself as a foreign policy realist who promoted cooperation between Washington and Moscow, but over time, Simes has become fully pro-Putin.

Last month, the FBI raided Simes’ Virginia country estate, which is mentioned in the current indictment.

New US sanctions against Russian propagandists for interfering in the election

On Wednesday, September 4, the United States announced a series of sanctions and indictments in connection with Moscow’s attempt to interfere in the election targeting propagandists of the sanctioned RT (Russia Today) channel.

The U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions against the leadership of the Russian propaganda channel RT and the hacker group RaHDit for interfering in the 2024 presidential election.

RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonian, her deputies Elizaveta Brodskaya and Anton Anisimov, deputy director of English-language broadcasting Andrei Kiyashko, digital media project manager Konstantin Kalashnikov, and his subordinate Elena Afanasyeva were subject to US sanctions.

According to the US Treasury, Anisimov was acting on behalf of the Russian Federal Security Service, and Afanasyeva was a front person who tried to reach and recruit American officials.

Today’s designations complement law enforcement actions taken by the Department of Justice and the Department of State’s designation of the Rossiya Segodnya media group and five of its subsidiaries, RIA Novosti, RT, TV-Novosti, Ruptly, and Sputnik, the statement said.