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'''Maria Valeryevna Butina''' ({{lang-ru|Мари́я Вале́рьевна Бу́тина}}; born November 10, 1988; also transliterated as '''Mariia''')<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/16/us/politics/trump-russia-indictment.html | title= Mariia Butina, Who Sought &lsquo;Back Channel&rsquo; Meeting for Trump and Putin, Is Charged as Russian Agent | date=July 16, 2018 | newspaper=The New York Times | author=Matt Apuzzo, Katie Benner and Sharon LaFraniere}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/verabergengruen/russian-gun-rights-nra-foreign-agent | newspaper=[[Buzzfeed]] | date=July 16, 2018 | author=Vera Bergengruen | title= Charges Say Accused Russian Agent Used The NRA And The National Prayer Breakfast In Effort To Influence US Policy}}</ref><ref name=ButinaAffidavit2018-07-14 /> is a Russian political activist alleged to have acted as an unregistered Russian agent, under [[Title 18 of the United States Code|18 U.S.C. §951]], in the United States. She is the founder of "{{ill|Right to Bear Arms|ru|Право на оружие (движение)}}", a Russian group.<ref name="NYTimes2017-12-03">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html|title=Operative Offered Trump Campaign &lsquo;Kremlin Connection&rsquo; Using N.R.A. Ties|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=December 3, 2017|first=Nicholas|last=Fandos|deadurl=no|archivedate=December 3, 2017|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171203121011/www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html|access-date=December 3, 2017}}</ref> In April 2018, Butina told the Senate Intelligence Committee that [[Konstantin Nikolaev]], a Russian billionaire, provided funding for the group.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/07/22/maria-butina-paid-russian-billionaire-konstantin-nikolaev/815856002 |title=Report: Alleged spy Maria Butina paid by Russian billionaire Konstantin Nikolaev |author=John Fritze |date=July 23, 2018 |website=USAToday.com |publisher= |access-date=July 26, 2018 |quote=}}</ref> Beginning in 2011, she worked for [[Aleksandr Torshin]], a former member of the [[Federation Council (Russia)|Federation Council]], a member of [[Vladimir Putin]]’s [[United Russia]] party, and a deputy governor of the [[Central Bank of Russia]].<ref name="NYT Maria Butina Loved">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/17/us/maria-butina-russian-agent-charges.html|title=Maria Butina Loved Guns, Trump and Russia. It Was a Cover, Prosecutors Say.|publisher=|accessdate=July 20, 2018}}</ref>
'''Maria Valeryevna Butina''' ({{lang-ru|Мари́я Вале́рьевна Бу́тина}}; born November 10, 1988; also transliterated as '''Mariia''')<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/16/us/politics/trump-russia-indictment.html | title= Mariia Butina, Who Sought &lsquo;Back Channel&rsquo; Meeting for Trump and Putin, Is Charged as Russian Agent | date=July 16, 2018 | newspaper=The New York Times | author=Matt Apuzzo, Katie Benner and Sharon LaFraniere}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/verabergengruen/russian-gun-rights-nra-foreign-agent | newspaper=[[Buzzfeed]] | date=July 16, 2018 | author=Vera Bergengruen | title= Charges Say Accused Russian Agent Used The NRA And The National Prayer Breakfast In Effort To Influence US Policy}}</ref><ref name=ButinaAffidavit2018-07-14 /> is a Russian political activist alleged to have acted as an unregistered Russian agent, under [[Title 18 of the United States Code|18 U.S.C. §951]], in the United States. She is the founder of "{{ill|Right to Bear Arms|ru|Право на оружие (движение)}}", a Russian group.<ref name="NYTimes2017-12-03">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html|title=Operative Offered Trump Campaign &lsquo;Kremlin Connection&rsquo; Using N.R.A. Ties|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=December 3, 2017|first=Nicholas|last=Fandos|deadurl=no|archivedate=December 3, 2017|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171203121011/www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html|access-date=December 3, 2017}}</ref> In April 2018, Butina told the Senate Intelligence Committee that [[Konstantin Nikolaev]], a Russian billionaire, provided funding for the group.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/07/22/maria-butina-paid-russian-billionaire-konstantin-nikolaev/815856002 |title=Report: Alleged spy Maria Butina paid by Russian billionaire Konstantin Nikolaev |author=John Fritze |date=July 23, 2018 |website=USAToday.com |publisher= |access-date=July 26, 2018 |quote=}}</ref> Beginning in 2011, she worked for [[Aleksandr Torshin]], a former member of the [[Federation Council (Russia)|Federation Council]], a member of [[Vladimir Putin]]’s [[United Russia]] party, and a deputy governor of the [[Central Bank of Russia]].<ref name="NYT Maria Butina Loved">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/17/us/maria-butina-russian-agent-charges.html|title=Maria Butina Loved Guns, Trump and Russia. It Was a Cover, Prosecutors Say.|publisher=|accessdate=July 20, 2018}}</ref>


In July 2018, while residing in [[Washington D.C.]], Butina was arrested by the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] (FBI) and charged with acting as an agent of the Russian Federation without notifying the attorney general under [[Title 18 of the United States Code|18 U.S.C. §951]] <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1080761/download|title=The criminal complaint against Maria Butina by the Dept. of Justice.|last=|first=|date=|website=justice.gov|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|access-date=}}</ref> but not the [[Foreign Agents Registration Act]] as was misreported in the media.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://www.lawfareblog.com/no-mariia-butina-wasnt-charged-violating-fara|title=No, Mariia Butina Wasn’t Charged With Violating FARA|last=|first=|date=2018-07-27|work=Lawfare|access-date=2018-09-03|language=en}}</ref> ''[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]'' magazine called the government accusation misleading and the charges murky.{{rs?|date=September 2018}}<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/07/the-mariia-butina-case-is-incredibly-murky.html|title=Misleading Government Accusation Against Butina Attorney Points to Murkiness of Case|last=Stahl|first=Jeremy|work=Slate Magazine|access-date=2018-09-03|language=en}}</ref> On December 10, 2018 it was reported that Butina intends to change her plea of not guilty in a plea deal.<ref name=pleadeal>https://edition.cnn.com/2018/12/10/politics/maria-butina-plea/index.html</ref><ref>https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/10/us/politics/maria-butina-russia-nra.html</ref>
In July 2018, while residing in [[Washington D.C.]], Butina was arrested by the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] (FBI) and charged with acting as an agent of the Russian Federation without notifying the attorney general under [[Title 18 of the United States Code|18 U.S.C. §951]] <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1080761/download|title=The criminal complaint against Maria Butina by the Dept. of Justice.|last=|first=|date=|website=justice.gov|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|access-date=}}</ref> but not the [[Foreign Agents Registration Act]] as was misreported in the media.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://www.lawfareblog.com/no-mariia-butina-wasnt-charged-violating-fara|title=No, Mariia Butina Wasn’t Charged With Violating FARA|last=|first=|date=2018-07-27|work=Lawfare|access-date=2018-09-03|language=en}}</ref> On December 10, 2018 it was reported that Butina intends to change her plea of not guilty in a plea deal.<ref name=pleadeal>https://edition.cnn.com/2018/12/10/politics/maria-butina-plea/index.html</ref><ref>https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/10/us/politics/maria-butina-russia-nra.html</ref>


Butina has had frequent visits from Russian officials.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/national-security/article218618820.html |title=Russian officials keep hanging out at U.S. jails. What do they want? |authors=Tim Johnson and Greg Gordon |date=September 19, 2018 |website=[[McClatchyDC.com]] |publisher= |access-date=September 24, 2018 |quote=}}</ref>
Butina has had frequent visits from Russian officials.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/national-security/article218618820.html |title=Russian officials keep hanging out at U.S. jails. What do they want? |authors=Tim Johnson and Greg Gordon |date=September 19, 2018 |website=[[McClatchyDC.com]] |publisher= |access-date=September 24, 2018 |quote=}}</ref>

Revision as of 00:25, 11 December 2018

Maria Butina
Butina in 2014
Born
Maria Valeryevna Butina
(Russian: Мари́я Вале́рьевна Бу́тина)

(1988-11-10) November 10, 1988 (age 35)
Barnaul, Altai Krai, RSFSR, USSR
Alma materAltai State University (Spc., Cand. of Sci.)[1]
American University (M.A.)[2]

Maria Valeryevna Butina (Russian: Мари́я Вале́рьевна Бу́тина; born November 10, 1988; also transliterated as Mariia)[3][4][5] is a Russian political activist alleged to have acted as an unregistered Russian agent, under 18 U.S.C. §951, in the United States. She is the founder of "Right to Bear Arms [ru]", a Russian group.[6] In April 2018, Butina told the Senate Intelligence Committee that Konstantin Nikolaev, a Russian billionaire, provided funding for the group.[7] Beginning in 2011, she worked for Aleksandr Torshin, a former member of the Federation Council, a member of Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party, and a deputy governor of the Central Bank of Russia.[8]

In July 2018, while residing in Washington D.C., Butina was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and charged with acting as an agent of the Russian Federation without notifying the attorney general under 18 U.S.C. §951 [9] but not the Foreign Agents Registration Act as was misreported in the media.[10] On December 10, 2018 it was reported that Butina intends to change her plea of not guilty in a plea deal.[11][12]

Butina has had frequent visits from Russian officials.[13]

Early life and education

Butina was born in Barnaul, Altai Krai, Russia, on November 10, 1988. Her mother was an engineer, and her father was an entrepreneur who established a furniture manufacturing business in Barnaul.[14] She grew up in the Siberian taiga, where her father introduced her to guns and taught her to hunt.[15] Butina said: "It is a rare Siberian who can imagine himself without a rifle in the home."[16]

She studied political science at Altai State University in Barnaul and also received a teaching degree. At 19, she was elected to the Public Council of Altai Krai in the last direct election for the Council.[17][14]

Biography

Butina built a furniture retail business in Altai Krai when she was 21.[14] In 2011, she moved to Moscow and sold six of her seven furniture stores to start an advertising agency.[14][18] That year, she participated in the Youth Primaries organized by the Young Guard of United Russia, the youth wing of the United Russia party, which rules the Russian Federation.[19]

Also in 2011, Butina founded Right to Bear Arms, described as a Russian gun-rights organization[16] that lobbied to change Russia's strict gun control laws. She began traveling back and forth to the U.S., initially with Aleksandr Torshin,[18] who was then a Senator in the Federation Council of Russia and a leading member of United Russia.[18] He had hired her as his "special assistant" that year.[8] In 2012, they lobbied the Federation Council to expand gun rights.[16] Butina resigned from her position as the head of Right to Bear Arms in late 2014.[20] In 2015, Butina said that Right to Bear Arms had 10,000 members and 76 offices in Russia.[21]

In 2013 she met Republican political operative Paul Erickson in Russia. The two became close, started dating, and eventually moved in together. In 2015 she emailed him a description of her plan to help the Republicans win the 2016 elections through the NRA.[22]

In August 2016, she moved to the United States on a student visa, and enrolled as a graduate student at American University in Washington, D.C.[23] Torshin became deputy governor of the Central Bank of Russia in January 2015, and she worked as his special assistant until May 2017.[24][6] In 2017, Butina told The Washington Post that she never worked for the Russian government.[25]

In February 2016, Butina and Erickson began a South Dakota business, Bridges LLC.[24][26] Erickson later said the company was established in case Butina needed any monetary assistance for her graduate studies, which Butina commenced in mid-2016 American University in Washington.[27] In 2018, she completed a masters degree in international relations.[28]

Involvement in U.S. politics

National Rifle Association

Torshin and Butina established a cooperative relationship between the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Right to Bear Arms. Torshin has attended NRA annual meetings in the United States since at least 2011. Following the 2011 meeting, then NRA President David Keene expressed his support for Torshin's "endeavors" and extended an invitation to the 2012 meeting.[29] Torshin also attended NRA annual meetings in 2012 and 2013.[21] In November 2013, Keene was a guest at the conference of the Right to Bear Arms in Moscow.[19]

Butina and Torshin attended the 2014 NRA annual meeting as special guests of former NRA president Keene.[24][30] Butina attended the Women's Leadership Luncheon at the 2014 meeting as a guest of former NRA president Sandy Froman.[25][30] Butina presented to then NRA president Jim Porter a plaque from Right to Bear Arms. Afterwards, she tweeted "Mission accomplished." As Keene's guest, Butina rang the NRA's Liberty Bell, saying, "To the right to bear arms for citizens of the whole world."[19] Butina and Torshin also attended the 2015 NRA annual convention.[31]

In 2015, a number of NRA officials attended Right to Bear Arms's annual gun conference in Russia. Among them were Keene, gun manufacturer and NRA first vice president Pete Brownell,[32] conservative American political operative Paul Erickson, and Milwaukee County sheriff David Clarke. One of their hosts was Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who in 2014 was sanctioned by the White House following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Clarke's trip cost $40,000, with all expenses paid by the NRA, Pete Brownell (an NRA board member and CEO of a gun-parts supply company) and Right to Bear Arms.[25][33][34] According to a disclosure Clarke filed, Right to Bear Arms paid $6,000 to cover his meals, lodging, transportation and other expenses.[18] During the meeting, Clarke met the Russian foreign minister and attended a conference at which Torshin spoke.[25][34] In November 2016, Torshin tweeted that he and Butina were lifetime NRA members.[21][35]

Republican Party

Butina has attempted to develop ties to conservative American politics. In a supporting affidavit to the government's support for pre-trial detention following her indictment in United States of America v. Mariia Butina, the FBI stated that she had successfully sought ties to the Republican Party, where it is referred to as "POLITICAL PARTY 1".[5] According to The Daily Beast, she has presented herself as a "Russian central bank staffer, a leading gun rights advocate, a 'representative of the Russian Federation,' a Washington, D.C. graduate student, a journalist, and a connection between Team Trump and Russia" in order to gain access to "high-level contacts" in Washington, D.C.[24] At the 2014 NRA annual meeting, Butina took selfies with Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and former U.S. Senator and 2016 presidential candidate Rick Santorum. At the 2015 NRA annual meeting, she met Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, and in July 2015, she was present at the launch of Walker's 2016 presidential campaign.[19][21]

Obama administration officials

In 2015, Torshin, then the Russian Central Bank deputy governor, and Butina met the Treasury undersecretary for international affairs, Nathan Sheets, to discuss U.S.-Russian economic relations.[36] Separately, they also met with a Federal Reserve vice chairman, Stanley Fischer and with a State Department official.[36][37][38]

Donald Trump campaign

In a June 2015 article published in The National Interest, a conservative American international affairs magazine, just before Trump announced his candidacy for president, she urged better relations between the United States and Russia,[21] saying, "It may take the election of a Republican to the White House in 2016 to improve relations between the Russian Federation and the United States." Her biography on the article did not mention that she worked for the Russian government.[19] The next month, Butina attended FreedomFest, where Trump gave a speech, and asked him from the audience about ending U.S. sanctions against Russia, to which he replied, "I don't think you'd need the sanctions."[19][39] Butina hosted a birthday party attended by Erickson and Trump campaign aides shortly after the 2016 election.[21]

In May 2016, Erickson sent an email with the subject line "Kremlin Connection" to Trump campaign adviser Rick Dearborn, asking Dearborn and then-Senator Jeff Sessions for advice on setting up a meeting between Trump and Putin at an annual NRA convention.[6][26]

USA vs Maria Butina

The complaint

United States of America v. Maria Butina
CourtUnited States District Court for the District of Columbia
Full case name United States of America v. Mariia Butina also known as Maria Butina
DefendantMaria Butina
ProsecutionErik Michael Kenerson [citation needed]
PlaintiffUnited States of America
Citation18 U.S.C. § 951.
Court membership
Judge sittingDeborah A. Robinson

On July 15, 2018, Butina was arrested in Washington, D.C. and charged with acting in the United States as an agent of a foreign government; specifically the Russian Federation, without prior notification to the Attorney General, a conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, to wit, 18 U.S.C. §951 (Foreign Relations, Agents of foreign governments), in violation of 18 U.S.C. §371 (Conspiracy).[40] When originally arrested many main stream media mistakenly reported she was charged with a violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (22 U.S.C. §11 Foreign Agents AND Propaganda). The website Lawfare pointed out that "the Justice Department’s National Security Division—which approves all FARA and Section 951 charges—takes the difference between the two crimes seriously."[10] Her attorney stated "The allegations of the indictment are essentially that her only illegal act was not registering."[10]

On July 18, Butina pleaded not guilty,[41] and a District Court judge ordered her jailed pending trial.[41] She is also said to be cooperating in a federal fraud investigation in South Dakota.[42]

Affidavit

According to the affidavit in support of the complaint, from as early as 2015 and continuing through at least February 2017, Butina worked at the direction of a high-level official in the Russian government, widely believed to be Torshin. The court filings detail the Russian official’s and Butina’s efforts for Butina to act as an agent of Russia inside the United States by developing relationships with U.S. persons and infiltrating organizations having influence in American Republican and conservative politics—such as the National Rifle Association, the National Prayer Breakfast and conservative religious organizations—for the purpose of advancing the interests of the Russian Federation.[43] The filings also describe certain actions taken by Butina to further this effort during multiple visits from Russia and, later, when she entered and resided in the United States on a student visa. The filings allege that she undertook her activities without officially disclosing the fact that she was acting as an agent of Russian government, as required by law.[44]

Butina, Torshin, and Erickson have been subjects of an investigation by the Senate Intelligence Committee into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. Erickson is referred to in Butina's indictment as "Person 1." In addition, George D. O'Neill, Jr., a conservative writer and Rockefeller heir, is "Person 2."[21][27][45] Torshin has also been the subject of a probe by the Federal Bureau of Investigation into whether the Russian government attempted to illegally funnel money to the NRA in order to help Trump win the presidency.[27][31] The FBI began to monitor Butina in August 2016 when she moved to the United States on a F-1 student visa. Rather than confront her immediately, the organization chose to track her movements and gather information of who she was meeting, and what her end goals were to be.[46]

Gag order

At the request of prosecutors,[47] the judge imposed a "gag order" preventing both the prosecution and defense from speaking publicly about the case.[48]

Plea deal

Butina's attorneys and federal prosecutors declared in a November 16, 2018, court filing that they had entered into plea negotiations.[49]

On December 10, 2018 it was reported that as a result of a plea deal, Butina intends to change her plea of not guilty.[11]

Reactions

On July 18, Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Butina's arrest was designed to undermine the "positive results" of the Helsinki summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, notwithstanding that she was arrested a day before the Trump-Putin meeting.[28] Butina's father has called the accusations against her "psychopathy and a witch-hunt".[50]

Rep. Thomas Massie (R–KY) commented that "Unfortunately, what began as only Russophobic rhetoric seems to have turned into a witch hunt, as President Trump calls it. For example, the current hysteria may have motivated the recent arrest and indictment of Maria Butina, a former Russian graduate student at American University in Washington, D.C.  Unlike many accused of violent crimes, Butina (who has not been accused of harming anyone) was denied bail, and is now reportedly being held in solitary confinement in federal prison until her trial."[51]

Pat Buchanan, noting that "History repeats itself first as tragedy, then as farce," compared the comparatively unimportant Maria Butina to prosecutions during the Cold War saying "Who do we have today to match Hiss and the Rosenbergs? A 29-year-old redheaded Russian Annie Oakley named Maria Butina, accused of infiltrating the National Rifle Association and the National Prayer Breakfast."[52]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Семья Марии Бутиной узнала из СМИ о ее задержании в США по обвинению в шпионаже". TASS. Archived from the original on July 17, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on July 17, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ Matt Apuzzo, Katie Benner and Sharon LaFraniere (July 16, 2018). "Mariia Butina, Who Sought ‘Back Channel’ Meeting for Trump and Putin, Is Charged as Russian Agent". The New York Times.
  4. ^ Vera Bergengruen (July 16, 2018). "Charges Say Accused Russian Agent Used The NRA And The National Prayer Breakfast In Effort To Influence US Policy". Buzzfeed.
  5. ^ a b Kevin Helson (July 14, 2018). "In the matter of an application for a criminal complaint for Mariia Butina, also known as Maria Butina". US Department of Justice. Archived from the original on July 17, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ a b c Fandos, Nicholas (December 3, 2017). "Operative Offered Trump Campaign ‘Kremlin Connection’ Using N.R.A. Ties". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 3, 2017. Retrieved December 3, 2017. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ John Fritze (July 23, 2018). "Report: Alleged spy Maria Butina paid by Russian billionaire Konstantin Nikolaev". USAToday.com. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  8. ^ a b "Maria Butina Loved Guns, Trump and Russia. It Was a Cover, Prosecutors Say". Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  9. ^ "The criminal complaint against Maria Butina by the Dept. of Justice". justice.gov. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  10. ^ a b c "No, Mariia Butina Wasn't Charged With Violating FARA". Lawfare. July 27, 2018. Retrieved September 3, 2018.
  11. ^ a b https://edition.cnn.com/2018/12/10/politics/maria-butina-plea/index.html
  12. ^ https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/10/us/politics/maria-butina-russia-nra.html
  13. ^ "Russian officials keep hanging out at U.S. jails. What do they want?". McClatchyDC.com. September 19, 2018. Retrieved September 24, 2018. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |authors= ignored (help)
  14. ^ a b c d Мостовщиков, Егор (April 17, 2014). "Как создать оружейное лобби и не прогореть" [How to create a weapons lobby and not burn out]. GQ Russia (in Russian). Archived from the original on June 13, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ "Maria Butina: NRA member, lobbyist, and Kremlin spy?". Deutsche Welle. July 17, 2018.
  16. ^ a b c Ioffe, Julia (November 15, 2012). "The Rise of Russia's Gun Nuts". The New Republic. Archived from the original on July 17, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  17. ^ Мария Бутина [Maria Butina]. Молодежные праймериз 2011 (in Russian). Archived from the original on April 8, 2018. {{cite web}}: Invalid |script-title=: missing prefix (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ a b c d Altman, Alex; Dias, Elizabeth. "Moscow Cozies Up to the Right". Time magazine. Archived from the original on March 9, 2017. Retrieved July 16, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ a b c d e f Dickinson, Tim (April 2, 2018). "Inside the Decade-Long Russian Campaign to Infiltrate the NRA and Help Elect Trump". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 7, 2018. Retrieved April 7, 2018. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  20. ^ Bodner, Matthew; Charlton, Angela; Pane, Lisa Marie (September 10, 2018). "Misfire: Maria Butina's strange route from Russia to US jail". The Washington Post. Associated Press. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g Clifton, Denise; Follman, Mark (March 8, 2018). "The Very Strange Case of Two Russian Gun Lovers, the NRA, and Donald Trump". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on July 17, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  22. ^ Prokop, Andrew (July 19, 2018). "Maria Butina, explained: the accused Russian spy who tried to sway US politics through the NRA". Vox. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
  23. ^ Karimi, Faith (July 19, 2018). "Maria Butina's many roles: Grad student. Gun rights activist. Alleged Russian agent". CNN. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  24. ^ a b c d Mak, Tim (February 23, 2017). "The Kremlin and GOP Have a New Friend – and Boy, Does She Love Guns". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on July 17, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  25. ^ a b c d Helderman, Rosalind S.; Hamburger, Tom (April 30, 2017). "Guns and religion: How American conservatives grew closer to Putin's Russia". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 9, 2018. Retrieved April 8, 2018. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  26. ^ a b Mak, Tim (March 1, 2018). "Depth Of Russian Politician's Cultivation Of NRA Ties Revealed". NPR. Archived from the original on July 15, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  27. ^ a b c Stone, Peter; Gordon, Greg (January 18, 2018). "FBI investigating whether Russian money went to NRA to help Trump". McClatchyDC. Archived from the original on July 16, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  28. ^ a b "Russian 'agent offered sex for job in US'". BBC News. July 18, 2018. Archived from the original on July 18, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  29. ^ Stedman, Scott (February 20, 2018). "In 2011 handwritten letter, NRA President offered help to Alexander Torshin for his "endeavors"". Archived from the original on June 14, 2018. Retrieved July 16, 2018. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  30. ^ a b Pavlich, Katie (May 6, 2014). "Part 1: Meet the Woman Working With the NRA and Fighting For Gun Rights in Russia". Townhall. Archived from the original on February 22, 2018. Retrieved April 8, 2018. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
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  34. ^ a b Cliff Schecter (December 5, 2016). "How David Clarke Bridges Donald Trump's Gun Nuts and Vladimir Putin's Kleptocrats". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on April 29, 2017. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  35. ^ Mak, Tim. "The NRA May Have More Russian Contributors Than It First Said". NPR. Archived from the original on June 15, 2018. Retrieved July 16, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  36. ^ a b Sarah N. Lynch (July 22, 2018). "Exclusive: Alleged Russian agent Butina met with U.S. Treasury, Fed officials". Reuters. Retrieved July 24, 2018. took part in separate meetings with Fischer and Sheets to discuss U.S.-Russian economic relations during Democratic former President Barack Obama's administration.
  37. ^ Bob Davis (July 22, 2018). "ACCUSED RUSSIAN AGENT BUTINA MET WITH STANLEY FISCHER". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 24, 2018. A career State Department official also attended the session, Mr. Saunders said.
  38. ^ Jeremy Herb; Sophie Tatum (July 23, 2018). "Alleged spy met with US officials in 2015". CNN. Retrieved July 24, 2018. Butina attended meetings in 2015 with Stanley Fischer, then Federal Reserve vice chairman, and Nathan Sheets, who was then Treasury undersecretary for international affairs in the Obama administration.
  39. ^ Follman, Mark (March 9, 2018). "Trump Spoke to a Russian Activist About Ending Sanctions – Just Weeks After Launching His Campaign". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on May 17, 2018. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  40. ^ "Dept of Justice complaint against Maria Butina, AO 9l (Rrv. 08/09) Criminal Complaint". August 9, 2018. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  41. ^ a b Lynch, Sarah N. (July 18, 2018). "U.S. judge orders accused Russian agent jailed pending trial". Reuters. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
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  43. ^ "Maria Butina, Suspected Secret Agent, Used Sex in Covert Plan, Prosecutors Say". Retrieved July 20, 2018.
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  45. ^ Rockefeller Heir Was Contact of Alleged Russian Agent, Wall Street Journal, Aruna Viswanatha and Julie Bykowicz, July 26, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
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  47. ^ "Accused Russian Spy Asks Judge to Deny Prosecution Gag-Order Bid". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
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  50. ^ "Maria Butina: Russian gun activist at heart of US Kremlin row". BBC News. July 18, 2018.
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  52. ^ "Is Putin's Russia an 'Evil Empire'?". Patrick J. Buchanan's Official Website. Retrieved September 4, 2018.
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