US offers $ 10 million reward for info about Russian Rybar media, interfering in US elections

The US Department of State’s Rewards for Justice program offers up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of foreign individuals or entities involved in US election interference through a Russian military blogger channel, Rybar.

Russia has been known for its involvement in US elections since 2016 and beyond, especially through hacking operations and social media manipulation. Russian campaigns have largely centered on disinformation aimed at influencing public opinion and undermining trust in American democratic institutions to deepen polarization. Russia was also accused of interfering in the European Union Parliament’s June elections. 

Rybar’s activities seek to “sow discord, promote social division, stoke partisan and racial discord, and encourage hate and violence in the United States,” according to Rewards for Justice.

Rybar LLC, a Russian media organization previously funded by Yevgeniy Prigozhin, the Founder of the Wagner Private Military Group, is now reportedly receiving funding from Rostec, a Russian defense industrial organization sanctioned by the US Treasury in June 2022.

Rybar utilizes Rostec’s connections and funding to “bolster Russia’s military capabilities and advance pro-Russian and anti-Western narratives.”

The organization manages social media channels such as #HOLDTHELINE and #STANDWTHTEXAS, which allegedly promote Russian government interests in the United States. 

Rybar has also established the “TEXASvsUSA” channel on X ahead of the 2024 US presidential election, aiming to “exploit the issue of undocumented immigrants crossing the Texas border.”

The report lists several individuals associated with Rybar’s operations:

• Vladimir Sergeyevich Berkutov (TEXASvsUSA),
• Aleksandr Klimovich Kan (Video Department Head)
• Tatyana Petrovna Kosterova (Foreign Language Resources Head),
• Olga Sergeyevna Kuznetsova (Rybar Regional Manager),
• Maksim Vitalyevich Matveyev “Matveev” (Designer & Lead of Content Team),
• Aleksandr Igorevich Minin (TEXASvsUSA Chief of Content),
• Valentina Valeryevna Minina (TEXASvsUSA),
• Mikhail Sergeyevich Zvinchuk (Rybar Director),
• Valeriya Vladimirovna Zvinchuk (Rybar Creative Director)

In September, the US government reported that Moscow had invested millions of dollars to influence the upcoming presidential election, allegedly creating dozens of web domains for “covert distribution of Russian government propaganda.”

The US also imposed sanctions on the Russian state-controlled outlet RT and its chief editor, Margarita Simonyan, for allegedly attempting to interfere in the upcoming 2024 elections

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has previously assessed that Rybar is attempting to expand its influence internationally, including support for Iranian-backed Iraqi efforts to gain greater control over the Iraqi information space.

Russia’s strategy to influence the 2024 US elections includes five key tactics as was identified in a book called Russia, Disinformation and the Liberal Order: 

1. Using local influencers
2. Fake news outlets
3. Exploiting social divisions
4. Сonspiracy theories and denial
5. Humor as disguise

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