Blinken accuses Russian media RT of being a network of Kremlin's worldwide intelligence

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has announced new sanctions against the state-backed Russian television network RT, known as Russia Today, after newly collected information showed it was “operating as a de facto wing of the Russian intelligence device”.

The Russian government in 2023 established a new unit in RT with cyber operational capacity and connections to Russian intelligence”, Blinken claimed, with the aim of spreading Russian influence on countries worldwide through information operations, secret influence and military procurement, writes The Guardian.

“Today, we are exposing how Russia introduces similar tactics worldwide”, Blinken said. “Russian dezination of deninforms to overthrow and polarise free and open societies extend to every part of the world”.

The US Treasury will sanction three entities and two individuals linked to Rossiya Segodnya, the Russian state media company, Blinken said. The decision came after the announcement earlier this month that RT had poured nearly $10m for conservative American influenceers through a local company to produce videos intended to influence the outcome of the US presidential election in November.

Speaking to reporters from the State Department on Friday, Blinken accused RT of financing weapons and equipment for Russian soldiers in Ukraine, including sniper rifles, armoured forces, night vision devices, fears, radio equipment and oil generators. Some of the equipment, including reconstruction fears, can be taken from China, he said.

The “while the campaign has been completed is open, what it's hiding is that this programme is managed by RT leader”, Blinken said. They included RT head Margarita Simonyan, who was among the company's nine employees targeted with the visa ban earlier this month.

Blinken also detailed how the organisation targeted countries in Europe, Africa and North and South America. In particular, he said the RT leadership had directly co-ordinated with the Kremlin to target the October 2024 elections in Moldova, a former Soviet state in Europe where Russia is accused of a hybrid struggle to exercise greater influence. In particular, he said, the RT leadership had “tried to stir up unrest in Moldova, potentially with the specific goal of causing protests to return violent”.

“RT is aware and prepared to help Russia's plans to fuel protests if the elections do not result in a preferred candidate from Russia to win the presidency”, Blinken said.

As a result of the RT's efforts for dezinformation, Blinken, the US, UK and Canada will launch a joint <x0 diplomatic campaign ... to gather allies and partners worldwide to join us in addressing the threat presented by RT and other Russian dezination machines and the secret impact”.